Pondering Freedom

“I recall the late 80’s”… my brother begins… “and early 90’s … where burning tyres… running from cops… throwing stones and teargas canisters was what school was all about. Youth fought with rage for the freedom of our country”.

It’s 26 April 2010 and after a leisurely supper, discussing all sorts of things, our conversation somehow turned to our schooldays. I recalled many days where Muneer arrived home breathless, recounting his day’s experience of attending some rally and the drama that usually unfolded.

In recollecting the events of that period, Muneer explains how rallies were arranged by the SRC between schools where a speaker representing the ANC, UDF or Cosatu were normally hosted. Students from surrounding schools attended the talks and although urged by speakers to avoid any form of violence, it was almost impossible to avoid as rallies dispersed. It just took one student to start some action then all hell broke loose. Soon … yellow casper vans were everywhere and this meant dodging rubber bullets, birdshots, teargas canisters and batons.

“We burnt tyres, wore gloves to throw hot teargas canisters back at cops, protected our faces with scarves and balaclavas from the zoom lenses” he recalls. “Somehow, there were always informers” so you’d find cops parked out early morning or surrounding the school even before anything happened. Helicopters often landed with cops jumping out armed. Those who were unfortunate enough to be identified would find themselves randomly snatched from class on normal schooldays . “You ran for your life” and often found refuge in some unknown aunty’s home who called you in.

“They also used these water canons with purplish water sprays that stained you for about two weeks”, mainly to identify youth involved in unrest a day or two later. Those who got caught were beaten to a pulp and left somewhere or further interrogated before being released (should you have been so lucky).

“I think things in Joburg was a bit worse” he continues, thus the Soweto 7 and Sharpeville Day. “Protesting for us meant an avenue to express our deep unhappiness “ of the injustices of the system back then. Although indirectly supported by teachers and even parents, it was youth who mobilised amongst themselves … bravely taking action in any way they knew how to express themselves. Our discussion continued for some time and I couldn’t help but ponder on the immence power of youth …united by a common goal and dream.

Today… we are living that dream and I personally commend those youth, along with every man and woman, who fought bravely for the injustices they felt and experienced. In celebrating Freedom Day… and although we’ve achieved much since then, I think its important to note that the dream has not (and should not) end… there is still much we can do. Today we just have a different dream in uniting through our diversities to continue building a prosperous South Africa for all. Youth of the 80’s and 90’s should serve as a reminder that, through unity, all dreams are possible.

(Picture courtesy http://newsone.com/files/2010/02/nelson_mandela_return_to_cell.jpg)

How do you step from the top of a 100-foot pole?

Well, you certainly don’t step from a pole that high… you close your eyes and jump I’d say.

Having ventured up the pole that far… you certainly didn’t do it in vain to begin with. You had some goal to achieve… some sort of plan of action. So its difficult to fathom why anyone would climb a 100-foot pole to simply what?... just climb down again? or just because? I would certainly think not. Something motivated you … something either waited for you at the top of that pole or most likely beyond. So whatever the reason… you’ve come this far… you don’t need to look down or meticulously strategize that next step… just take it.

I believe that everything in life happens for a reason. Often that reason may not be clear at the time… but somehow down the line… the light bulb flickers. Many situations often just don’t make any sense at all. I think that too often we envision a future or outcome and do everything in our power to attempt to control that outcome. When things don’t exactly go our way… we feel lost, confused, cheated by fate. And this because things are not exactly going according to THE PLAN.

In my humble experience with life, I’ve learnt that the future almost never turns out the way I envision. I may come close… yet still it’s not exactly what I had in mind. So the unexpected crops up, hits you like ton of bricks…. “this was not part of the plan… jeez what now?... forget it all?... start new?

I’ve learnt that there are things in my life I can certainly control and then there’s the unexpected I never even thought of. So instead of fretting about the “what now?” or thinking about how to fix a mess… maybe it’s a matter of relinquishing control… and taking the road less travelled. Letting go and let life take its course… and this I think is the hard part. We’re stubborn and set in our ways and think we can control almost every aspect of our lives. Well… newsflash… it’s never been that way and never will be. When faced with some adversity we could be fooled into thinking it’s the end of it all. Yet somehow we always make it through with new experiences and challenges along the road.

So… to step from that 100-foot pole we need to put our faith in the unknown… jump and the net will appear.

(Picture courtesy of http://www.chrisduel.com/LeaperFire.jpg)

Pearls of Wisdom

Introducing Pappa Smurf... or so he likes to be known.

Some of you may recognise this face from an old Coco-Cola ad…. or just by hanging around Long Street maybe.

Pappa Smurf is an old friend (excuse the pun) of mine and his energy and zest for life always astounds. Somewhat of a legend in Long Street where you’ll either find him at some backpacker, walking the street or chatting up just about anybody and everybody.

Pappa keeps himself busy in various ways. At his age (which is truly a mystery) he gets up at odd hours to be on set for a day of two of shooting. Pappa’s also an avid still life painter with his next exhibition coming up soon. A new found activity has become playing online games… “oh Mafia Wars rock” he laughs. To top it off- Pappa can still be found at certain clubs dancing the night away.

So what keeps him going? “I simply love life and live it by the Inter-galactic laws"… or Universal laws if you will. “It’s just common sense”… cause and effect… what you give out will return to you in some way etc etc… “there’s just really no other way to live”. Pappa believes that everyone is just a “piece of light in a vehicle” and the best thing you can do for yourself is “get rid of your ego” and live by universal laws.

So Pappa’s pearls of wisdom: (1) Live by universal laws...read these two books- “The Light Shall Set You Free” by Dr Norma Milanovich and Eckhart Tolle’s “Power of Now”; (2) Don’t drink alcohol!!!... “it’s the biggest evil ever invented”.

A truly mysterious man with many stories to tell …I’ve only ever seen him happy and engaged in whatever, whoever and wherever he finds himself. To me… Pappa certainly walks the talk of his pearls of wisdom.

We are what we do

Action speaks louder than words. It’s really that simple.

A host of factors determines what we do, influencing or motivating our everyday actions. Some of these factors include our instincts, responses to, for example: fear; curiosity; and aggression. Other factors include societal and cultural attitudes of where we live. Thus our behaviours are directed at fitting into the various societal roles.... we’re mothers, fathers sisters, daughters, sons etc etc… as well as fulfilling any other roles we may have set for ourselves…. Dr, manager, secretary, director, friend, priest etc etc.

Despite the various roles we undertake at any given time, a far better measure and reflection of who we are, what we think, feel, concentrate on most - is reflected in our actions. For example, the Priest/Imam spotted behind the 7’s machine at Grandwest… the CEO spotted coming out of Adult World… the gadget geek seen volunteering at the local soup kitchen.

So- my point boils down to the old story of book and cover. For instance, just because I wear all the religious regalia – does not necessarily mean I’m deeply religious. It may just be what I’d like people to think of me and who I am. However, a much better reflection of my being religious would be evident in the articles I write, classes I attend or teach, ceremonies and stuff I engage in.

So- whatever role… or roles… you playing in life- your actions are most often the truest reflection of who you are. No matter how you dress, where you eat, who you hang with... what we ultimately do is by far a more accurate reflection of who exactly we are.


(Picture courtesy of danwallacemusic.com http://is.gd/bqYRN)

We are afraid of the wrong things

FEAR!!! That infamous little word that has the ability to take our breath away, tie our tongues and serve as a deterrent to the great unknown. Safety and security of our world always preferred.

We learn about fear throughout our life journey- whether by experiencing traumatic events ourselves or even seeing fear in others. We are a nation (humanity even) where fear has been carefully instilled into our very being. Everyday we read papers, watch news, TV or movies all expressing fear in some form or another. We fear failure, rejection, being alone, intimacy, “what the people might say”, death and ultimately life.

I often think that fear often stems from our belief in the norm… the realities we create… our beliefs about life – ultimately a collection of what we have been taught, our experiences and what the media would like us to believe what life is all about. The happily-ever-after syndrome where people are perfect and don’t make mistakes. Stepping out of this reality becomes the unthinkable.

Yet what happens when we decide to lift this veil, take-off the blinkers and venture into the unknown? What happens when we actually do those things we think we cannot do? What happens when we stare our fears in the face?

For every fear conquered we gain strength, courage and confidence we thought we never had. I truly believe that we think about security more than we think about opportunity. I truly believe that people are often afraid to live and unleash their own potential. By being too afraid to live and experience, we may never have invented the telephone, electricity, heck we may never have been able to fly.

In our world of dynamic change, experience is our best teacher. And learning from experience means experiencing the consequences of your thoughts and actions, something many of us would rather not face. If we had no unpleasant consequences for our actions, how could we possibly learn and attain higher levels of understanding?

So to face our fears, we need to stop being both the sheep and sheep dog of the “norm”. Yes we are a part of society, but society is nothing but the sum total of our thoughts and feelings… a reflection of our attitudes. By expressing our uniqueness of view and lifestyle, even if it differs from the norm, we cease to be the sheep. By allowing everyone else to do the same, without fear of being ridiculed or condemned for the crime of being different, we cease to be the sheep dog. By creating an environment where free will and choice is respected, we create an environment where we are free to live, and not afraid of life.

Pickled traditions

Fish, onions, spices and hot cross buns in one sentence would only make a whole lotta sense to the Capetonian. With Good Friday just behind us, I’m sure many have fond memories of a long weekend with yellow fingers. Digging into pickled fish over Easter is certainly a unique Capetonian tradition upheld since … er ..er … time immemorial it seems.

As tradition has it, the scurrying for ingredients and careful preparation start well before Good Friday … the earlier the better cos as we all know … good pickled fish needs its own me-time. Getting back to time immemorial, ever wonder how the tradition got going in the first place?

Since pickled fish is commonly known as being a Cape Malay dish, I think it’s safe to assume the tradition’s origin could be as old as say 350 years… or somewhere there around. Here I’m thinking of the 1600 – 1700 time period where slaves from many countries were brought to a new strange world, bringing with them their own unique traditions.

Since food and comfort love holding hands… I picture a slave with fond memories of his last meal as a free person. His world is dramatically turned upside down as he gets chained, dumped in a ship and transported to an unknown world where he is to face unimaginable challenges. Unfamiliar and threatening is what his world becomes. Aiding a meek sense of comfort, the slave finds solace in remembering home. And there is no better way to remember home than with home-cooked (traditional) food. For the slave this may have meant adjusting ethnic recipes to include ingredients found in their new strange world. And to South Africa is born a most unique cuisine, the result of a combination of many cultural groups including African, Indian, Malaysian, Dutch. Aren’t we lucky people?? Think you could get this combination anywhere else in the world? I doubt America’s Soul Food is any competition.

So today we still enjoy our rich heritage of unique cuisine… bobotie, chutney, koeksisters, milk tart, potjiekos, mashonzha (mopani worms), umngqusho (stamp mielies, sugar beans etc), vetkoek, boerewors, tripe and many more can be celebrated by every South African as a result of our pickled traditions.