Sunday 15 December 2013

My tuppence ha'penny perspective on Madiba's passing

“Nothing is permanent in this WICKED world, not even our TROUBLES.”
 ~ Charlie Chaplin

Everything in life is transitory and everything can AND does change ... people,
situations, thoughts, feelings ... and especially our weather!

What has been the most WOW kind of morning is rapidly disintegrating into an ominous thunderstorm if the ginormous rumbles of thunder are anything to go by.  
Aux doesn’t often DO thunder so we sit up and take notice when it does.
A rather dishevelled looking seagull in the waves
My thoughts of late have been with my family and friends in SA.  The recent passing of Nelson Mandela has triggered off a whole host of emotions which I thought I had under control.

Leaving SA four and a half years ago was tough.  I hadn’t wanted to leave and homesickness and a sense of loss engulfed me for months after my arrival here in NZ.  I’ve mentioned in previous posts how a change in my attitude towards our  move was necessary in order for me to survive.
I still don't understand the point of shaking off the water when you're standing in the waves.
Moving countries ISN’T and WILL never be for sissies.
You leave a piece of yourself behind no matter the reasons for leaving.

The death of Nelson Mandela has rekindled the heartache.  
South Africa might not be the land of my birth but my roots are firmly entrenched there.
A rather energetic bunch doing boot-camp on the beach this morning.
You have to be a very special person to do what Mandela did.  He was an exception in a world which focuses on self.  His actions as a terrorist and his actions as a freed man speak volumes.  

The media has been full of articles and posts on his life and actions and, whilst I understand the anger and bitterness some people feel towards him, I can’t agree with them.  He was definitely no saint but, at the end of the day, he fought for what he believed in ... freedom for all.  

No matter my moral, religious or cultural beliefs, I don’t have the right to judge him for choosing to live his life according to his beliefs.  
What might I do were I denied the right to freedom in the land of my birth.
We're IN the waves with her and she's just been told to sit .... in the waves ... and she did.
On his release he portrayed and expressed the very kindness, forgiveness and seeking of good in others that makes me human.  I can learn a lot from his capacity to forgive.  
South Africa and it’s people can.  We all can.
This young girl was captivated by the hound's antics.
To me, Nelson Mandela was what Ubuntu is all about. 

We think of ourselves as individuals, our actions separating us one from another, but we’re not.  
We’re all connected and what each of us does affects the whole.  
You cannot exist as a human being in isolation, no matter how hard you might try.
Ubuntu is the very essence of being human and everything that entails.

My wish as he departs the world of the living is that all of us might emulate his ability to see the good in everyone we meet. 
Fish and Chips on the beach this evening
God Speed Madiba


2 comments:

Unknown said...

Damn, I like your work!

Chocolat and Co said...

Haha .... thanks Deni! The feelings mutual.