Mandela Day
18th July 2017.
the great plains of Africa echo your name, you live in our souls, a radiant flame.
the notions of racial superiority quake in your shadow, in the teeming cities, in the rural meadow.
you had an ideal for which you were prepared to die, you banished the clouds of oppression, revealing freedom’s unfettered sky.
your courage as you spent twenty-seven years in Apartheid dungeons, was unshakeable, even as you bore the brutality of tyrannical truncheons.
your comrades and you turned Robben Island into a university of freedom, of hope, even as you were shackled by iron and rope.
your indomitable spirit reached far and wide, across the great lands and over the vast seas, infusing freedom-loving people with the strength to fight, against that festering sore, the scourge of Apartheid, with all their collective might.
and when that day came when you walked under the South African sun, tall, proud and free, we ululated, we danced, we cried tears of joy, for at long last the dawn of liberation we could finally see.
and still your battles were far from over, as you steered our teetering country away from the abyss, the violence of Apartheid so brutal in its death throes, your message of forgiveness, of reconciliation spread as far as the wind blows.
those were harsh times indeed, our beloved South Africa on the precipice of civil war, the stench of blood on the breeze, yet you remained firm, urging us to throw our weapons into the waters of our seas.
then dawned the 27th of April in 1994, when all of our peoples queued to vote, democratically and peacefully, to realise the ideals and principles you and your comrades and countless, nameless others, fought, sacrificed, and died for.
and on the 10th day of May a couple of weeks later, you became our President, our Commander-in-Chief, as the yoke of hegemony was cast off, after all the pain, the suffering, the savagery, and the grief.
your principles never wavered, you did not to the powerful bow, you remained steadfast in your dream of a better society for all, you taught us to rise up again, to stand upright, after many a fall.
your humanity, your conscience became a part of the wind, your message, your dedication to the human cause, inspired numberless more, breaking the latches of racism on many a shut door.
you were our Madiba, our father, our beacon of truth, your message imbibed by so many, the aged and the youth.
then came that sorrowful day when you passed away, and to the welcoming arms of our ancestors you made your way.
we cried, we sobbed, our world convulsed, having lost you as you no longer walked amongst us in flesh and in bone, yet your example, your life entire, became a lesson set in stone.
today we fight newer battles, the enemy not so apparent, not so clear, corrupt in words and in deed, we see the scurrying for power and for greed.
we see our beloved rainbow nation fracturing, your dreams of economic and social justice diluted by avarice, and not by need.
but still we cherish and strive and fight on, todays battlefields less easily defined, the enemy often within us, and harder to find.
still your revolutionary spirit, your unwavering belief in equality for all, your principled struggle never expedient, but for what was, for all, true and right,
it is still that undying spirit of yours that compels us to never rest, to never give up the just fight.
Viva Nelson Mandela Viva!
Mayibuye-i-Afrika!
Amandla! ngAwethu!
All Power to the People!
The Struggles Continue …
with President Nelson Mandela. Johannesburg 2008.
__________
On this special day I would like to let you know that you will always be a very special person to me because you are a humble human being. I will always admire you irrespective of what happened between us! Take care.
LikeLiked by 1 person
thank you, dear mysterious friend. and you are being too kind about me being so humble and all that jazz … stay well and wishing you health and peace and joy ✌😊
LikeLike
“irrespective of what happened between us” – thank you for forgiving me, my friend
LikeLike
What a wonderful thing to have known Mr. Mandela, Afzal!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have been very very fortunate indeed, Mitch! Very humbling, inspiring, and indescribably special moments. thank you, my friend, for your blog! a wonderful place to visit!
Peace and Equality ✌
LikeLike
apologies Anne, I pressed the ‘send’ button by mistake so that’s why my response to you is in two parts! warmest wishes and the very best of regards.
Stay well and stay healthy.
Cheers from South Africa!
LikeLiked by 1 person
my being so so fortunate to have met with Nelson Mandela a few times is something inexpressible and humbling and inspiring beyond words.
as you said such human beings will never be forgotten and their example of being human beings of peace is something that will endure and continue to shine a light on the so-called ‘leaders’ we have today for whom self-enrichment and self-aggrandisement is valued higher than their responsibilities to do the best for the people they claim to represent.
As always thank you for your very inspiring words, Anne!
with warmth and love and with the hope of peace and equality I remain yours respectfully,
Afzal
LikeLiked by 1 person
Honest, heartfelt words for a man who will NEVER be forgotten! What he did and the sacrifices he made are truly amazing, and I am still absolutely astonished by what he was able to endure! You met him? What an honor that must have been! My father-in-law did a semester at sea and during his travels met Bishop Tutu…I was so envious! Great hearts and great minds continue to live on in others. Here’s to perseverance for equality & peace in the name of Mandela ✊☮️❤️🎶!~Anne
LikeLiked by 1 person
such true words, dear Anne, great minds live on in others. what an experience it must have been for your father-in-law meeting Bishop Tutu!
one cannot even imagine what giants like Nelson Mandela and his comrades must have endured, and to have suffered all that and still choose the path of peace and reconciliation and to shun notions of revenge truly makes Nelson Mandela and his fellow freedom fighters deeply humane.
On a personal note, my father spent time in jail with Nelson Mandela in Pretoria (not on Robben Island) during the “Treason Trial” of 1956. Nelson Mandela gave my elder sister her isiXhosa name “Nobandla” which means ‘she who is of the people’.
my being so fortunate to have met with Nelson Mandela
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, that’s amazing! Thanks for sharing and for your words of inspiration, honesty, and emotion! You are continuing his messages & we ALL need it more than ever! ☮️🌻☯️❤️
LikeLiked by 1 person
you are being too kind, Anne. I was just fortunate. those who are truly living his words, and others like him like MLK are those people who bear the economic and social and political brunt of the inequality of this world. from gender based violence to political and social repression … those are in my eyes the truest heroes and heroines who make a stand each day in the face of horrible repercussions. gosh we could chat about this and so much more for so much longer! the isiXhosa word “uBuntu” says it all. it is the concept that human beings are all related and means ‘I am because we are’ or ‘I am because you are’
LikeLiked by 1 person
Beautiful name & those are the truest words…we are one and the more people realize that the safer and healthier we will be as a civilization! We could have hours of these conversations & I am forever grateful to have connected with you though miles and oceans apart! These conversations and bonds unify & that is more important than anything. Our actions and those exemplified by these heroes we speak of are the genuine expression of who people really are. Peace & Bless You Always, Anne
LikeLiked by 1 person
absolutely. these bonds that we forge across oceans and over borders truly bind us together. it has been and is wonderful to have connected with you – it is a testament to the fact that our shared humanity lives within us all, regardless of race, gender, culture, creed, or the many other ‘walls’ that choose to separate us. we live in such a beautiful and bounteous world where all humans can be well-fed and live with dignity, but alas the forces of greed and of hate and of those who hoard the wealth of this earth and their self-centred pursuit of more and ever more affects us all as a species and the countless other species we share this planet with. we must live with hope and with the conviction that truth and the compassionate parts of what makes us human will rise above these real and harsh realities. in the words of the civil rights song – we SHALL overcome!
Nelson Mandela said that “no one is born hating another person. Hate is taught. And if hate can be taught then love can be taught too, for love comes more naturally”.
My very warmest of wishes, Anne, and wishing you peace and health and joy.
Respectfully yours,
Afzal
LikeLiked by 1 person
Loved your post, thanks for sharing! 🙂
In Mandela one would of found
A strength that kicked Apartheid
Out of town, out of Africa
Mandela’s spirit lives on!
LikeLiked by 1 person
thank you very much, my friend. your words are true indeed. may his spirit continue to inspire us.
Peace and Equality ✌👍
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Afzal, Peace and Equality, it has to happen!
LikeLiked by 1 person
it has to, my friend!
LikeLike
🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
✊
LikeLiked by 1 person
I like that ☺
LikeLiked by 1 person
thanks you, my friend 😊
Peace ✌
LikeLike
Take a look on my blog and follow me if you like it 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
will do, my friend
Peace ✌👍
LikeLike
Thanks 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
A great post.
LikeLiked by 1 person
thank you, my friend. much appreciated.
Peace ✌
LikeLiked by 1 person
my friend and fellow blogger, how true your words are, as we hope to make every day a Mandela Day! Warmest wishes , my friend, and halth and equality and economic and social justice for all.
Peace ✌
LikeLike