How often do we ask ourselves these questions?

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We live and do things without asking ourselves imperial questions that will give clarity on why we do certain things, what guides our actions and whether those actions are well thought.  I often wondered how many times do we lay awake at night and reflect on the activities of the day and whether we are proud of what we did, and also if those actions are who we are and the footprint we want to leave in this world once we move on to the land of the dead.

I often asked myself why it is so easy for human beings to reject a good person, yet we stay with someone who takes us through hell, why is it so easy for us to leave home, but so hard for us to come out of a hole.  Why do we sleep in school, but yet stay awake through a three hour movie.  Most importantly I ask myself why is it so hard to talk about God, but so easy to talk about premarital sex and why it is so easy to get married and yet so hard to invite God to be part of the marriage and help us not cheat.  Why is it so easy for us to say we love someone and yet so hard to remain faithful.  I asked myself many  times and I would direct this question to my kids and the youth of today  about the reasons that make it difficult for them to look at a Christian or any other religious book but find it easy to read gossip and the reason why churches are getting small whereas bars and clubs are expanding.

I may not have answers for these questions but I am sure that most of the social ills that we are experiencing today are as a result of us not asking ourselves whether what we doing is beneficial to us and the entire community.  Most of the morals and values we were raised by vanished with the last century now it’s more fashionable to conduct ourselves in a manner that does not develop us.  My only hope is for us to go back and ask ourselves whether we want to continue in this disruptive manner or go back to our roots and regenerate our morals.

An elephant in the room

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An elephant represent a number of things such as grace, prosperity, power, loyalty and wisdom.  In many families there is likely to be a person that possesses these qualities, a person that hold all the power even though he or she did not demand for it, a person with wisdom that we all run to when we need guidance.  Like many other families, in my family there was that distinct person and that individual was my father.

My Father whom many called Ufafa Olude (Elegant man) was a man that possessed almost all the qualities mentioned above, his courage, strength and determination made him establish the first black high school in Knysna (Percy Mdala High School).  The high school was later named after him in honour of his work, indeed the naming honoured a man that spent most of his life trying to solve other peoples problems, an individual that was determined to share his good fortune with the less fortunate.

Yes, like many other human beings, he too had his faults but what I admired about him the most was his ability to rise above the odds and pick up where he left off.  His good nature and commitment still resonates in the hearts of the people of Knysna, he is remembered for his strength even though his heart seized to beat twenty eight years ago

A NOTE TO MY FRIENDS

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Dear friends, as I reflect on the journey I have travelled thus far, the journey of life, a journey filled with love, fear, uncertainty and obstacles aimed at testing my endurance and my faith in God.  Looking at the challenges that I have overcomed made me come to the realization that I could not have prevailed it is wasn’t for the love and support you have shown me.  For that I say thank you, you have certainty made a difference.

As I prepare to celebrate my 50^th birthday, I urge you to be by my side with the same enthusiasm towards this journey and pray that it turns the way we plan it.  Comrades, colleagues, friends and family with all that said, I would like to wish you a prosperous life, may you achieve all that your heart desires and realize your dreams because the sky is the limit.

Through my years of serving the people with determination and commitment, I have come to realize that Aluta Continua.   The struggle goes on, up until we have emancipated every (young) women and child, when we have successfully won the battle against poverty and AIDS and all the other obstacles that stand in the way of our nations ability to fulfill the imperatives of the Freedom Charter may we say we are free.  

Losing it all

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Watching the movie titled The Vow with my daughter made me realize how  living creatures take things for granted.  The movie is structured around a lady that was involved in an accident and lost some part of her memory, which makes her forget the life she had with her husband.  This movie made me realize how I have taken for granted the privilege of remembering my past.

Watching that movie made me realize the implications of not remembering the good and the bad that has happened in ones life, the people that matter the most and the incidents that has passed that had changed my life.  When one is going through a bad patch you hear them saying, only if I can erase that part of my life, the emotions we feel at that particular time makes us forget that, that experience is important in teaching us how we deal with such challenges if we come across them again. 

Everyday is a good day

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What a life my granddaughters  are living, to them life is a breeze and they appreciate every moment of it.  Being home full time has opened my eyes on the privileges some of kids of today have, they don’t have to worry about whether they will be food when they return from school, they don’t have to worry about heading cattle’s from the fields, they have an opportunity to live their lives the way children should.

Observing the way they carry themselves, living freely and loving this life of theirs brings joy to my heart because I know their freedom was gained through hard work, many people lost their lives making sure that my grandchildren will live in a society where they feel nothing less than freedom, a society where they can realize their true potential and aspire to be who and what they want to be.

I am truly happy to observe the fruits of our fallen heroes and heroin’s is paying off, I am happy that there are children who can play around the streets without fearing any danger and they know that their communities supports them in what they do.  Yes I am not oblivion to the fact that there are still many obstacles to overcome, there are children out there who are not privileged as my grandchildren, they need to fight for their daily survival, and they go to bed without a meal.  I understand all the challenges that our country is facing, but I am merely admiring the few who can indeed say everyday is a good day, a statement I wish many children will come to pronounce and  a statement that was relevant in my own childhood.

When love just ain't enough

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Today marks the second anniversary of my brother, the youngest in my family.  This day in 2010 when fellow South Africans and the rest of the world converged to our beautiful land, my family received heart shuttering news that our baby boy (who was now a grown man) heart seized to beat, he had taken his last breath, closed his eyes for the last time and moved on to the unknown world, my brother had died.

The brother we all loved succumbed to the angel of death and we were left wondering what could be God’s plan of taking this young man who had so much potential, a man that was determined to change the lives of so many young boys who had lost their reason for living.  Our immense grief made us to battle to understand how the Lord can just remove such a loved soul from our eyes, a man whose life had just began.

Grief overshadowed our hearts as we battle to come to terms with the loss of a man that was loved by everyone he met.  Today as I celebrate the life of my brother, I understand love was just no enough to keep him on this earth, he had done what was set out for him.  I celebrate a life well lived.  May his beautiful soul find everlasting peace, he is dearly missed.

Our greatest strength are our greatest weaknesses

This statement reminds me of my former boss whom I admired for his passion and knowledge of the sector we were working in.  The man was abreast with most of the activities that occurred in the sector, understood the legislative framework in which we operated under, and understood and managed to interpret the policies that governed our existence.

Like any human being, my boss had a weakness and his weakness was arrogance.  The knowledge and experience that he gained through out the years made him undermine other people’s contribution, his arrogance made it difficult for him to accept advice from people he had mentored.  Unfortunately his arrogance blocked his ability to see potential on the contribution made by others.    His determination and eagerness to shine more that everyone else made him to fall hard and lose all the credibility he had throughout his career.  Indeed, our greatest strength can be our greatest weaknesses.