MY MOTHER’S DAY PLEDGE

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By Marjorie J. Hurst—-
Reprinted from May 1, 2007—-

Outside Cape Town, South Africa, April, 2007
Outside Cape Town, South Africa, April, 2007

On a recent trip to South Africa, I was struck by the unparalleled beauty of the country, the proud dignity of the people, and the expressed confidence espoused by both blacks and whites that South Africa was moving in the direction of equality for all, and doing so without making any of the many mistakes of or succumbing to the brutally and violence being perpetrated by its neighbors.

Frankly, however, the sight of miles and miles and miles of shanties clearly visible from the highway, which make up the township of Khaylitsha with a population of over 500,000 black South Africans right outside of Cape Town, the city that is “rated as one of the world’s 8 new meccas” and ranked fifth in “50 Places to See Before You Die,” seemed to belie that sentiment.

On the other hand, there is Soweto (South Western Township), South Africa’s largest, with a population of approximately 900,000, and original black township located 11 miles outside of Johannesburg, where in 1933, after passage of the Slums Clearance Act, black South Africans were forcibly separated from whites and coloreds, evicted from the inner city of Johannesburg, and resettled in this new black township.  The uprising in 1976, led by Soweto students protesting the white segregationist government’s decision to force them to be educated in Afrikaners, ultimately led to the end of apartheid in South Africa.  And here, in Jo’burg as Johannesburg is affectionately called, and in Soweto,  we were able to see visible examples of the beginnings of the promised transformation for black South Africans.

Picture Taken with permission in Soweto, South Africa, April, 2007
Picture Taken with permission in Soweto, South Africa, April, 2007

Here there was evidence of hope.  We toured a 4-room house provided by the government for 160 rands a month, which equates to about $24.00—2 bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room, with an outside bathroom facility and a separate outside cooking room—and is considered middle class housing.  And most of what we saw—and we saw a lot—were either government supplied houses or privately owned houses.  We saw nowhere near the number of shanties in Soweto as we saw right outside of Cape Town.

But with a 35% unemployment rate, there are bound to be some because one is able to live in them for free.  And that’s where we met the young mother and her son in the picture below.  I don’t know her name.  I don’t know anything about her except she had twins at birth and one died and what she has is what you see — a bed and a couch with no electricity and no running water and no toilet facilities.

I know that as we snapped pictures of her and her abode, after asking her permission, she evidenced a quiet dignity and strength.  She didn’t convey a sense of helplessness nor hopelessness.  She asked us for nothing.  We asked her if we could give.  And she quietly accepted.  As a matter of fact, as I reflect back, no one I met during the trip begged—not the vendors selling their wares, not the children, not the obvious poor—in stark contrast to what we see here and elsewhere.

So, notwithstanding all of the beauty I saw, all of the history I learned, all of the once-in-a-lifetime adventures I experienced, all of the wonderful places I toured, all of the new friends I made, the most meaningful impression I have of South Africa is of the hope of that mother and I dedicate this pledge to her.

My Mother’s Day Pledge
“Never Again”

Never again will I cry for what I think I don’t have.
Never again will I take what I do have for granted.
Never again will I accumulate more and more and more
Just for the sake of having it.

Never again will I forget to say thank you
Each day as I arise and each night as I lay down.
Never again will I complain about the little things
That in the grand scheme of life mean nothing.

Never again will I get sidetracked on trivia
And forget what’s important.
Never again will I forget to hold close
Those I love and those who love me.

Never again will I take my life for granted.
Never Again.  Never Again.

Happy Mother’s Day!

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