Linda Mtoba opens up about growing up with an absent father

Linda Mtoba is getting real about the biggest heartbreak she experienced as a child. The actress, who was raised by a single mother, says her father's absence broke her heart - especially on birthdays. 

She opened up about the situation after a Twitter user asked: When’s the first time you remember feeling heartbroken as a child?

"My dad not coming or even calling for my birthday. I waited all day for him and ran to the phone inside when it rang. My (mom) family had thrown me a party. Still, all I wanted was [for] him to come or at least care enough to call. He didn’t. Maybe I was 4," the 31-year-old replied. 

Linda, who celebrates her birthday on November 11, says her mother became a single mom at a young age. 

"My mom was only 23 having to deal with such, hectic. My mom was only 23 having to deal with such, hectic. Not only did he break her heart but he did it to me too. And she was also just a baby nkosi yam." 

The former 'Isibaya' star revealed in a follow up tweet that her father has since passed away, which saved her "a lot more heartache". 

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Linda credits her husband, Steven Meyer, with helping heal her broken heart. She says watching him being a father to their daughter, who they call 'Bean', fills her heart with so much joy. 

"My husband by virtue of being an amazing partner and an even better father not knowingly has healed so much of my hurt. I often look at him especially now with our daughter and I want to cry at just how perfect those moments are," she tweeted. 

Linda and Steven tied the knot in 2017 and welcomed their daughter in 2019. 

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Linda told Nounouche magazine last year that she always wanted to get married before having children. She didn't want her daughter to have the same experience she had. 

"My mother was very honest with me about some of the challenges she faced being a single mother and I knew I wanted better for myself. Growing up, I longed for my father and I knew then that I wanted my child to grow up in a two-parent household and God has been good in making that a reality for me," she said. 

Her stepfather also stepped up to be the dad she always wanted. 

"He was always there for me and we still have a great relationship. We would go jogging together, he would bring me lunch at work and we would go shopping together. It’s the love and time he had, never about how much money he had. He always came home carrying something and was very affectionate with my mother. I knew I wanted that kind of relationship," she said. 

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Main image credit: Instagram/@linda_mtoba