The Valiant Women.
(for the countless women, names unknown, who bore the brunt of Apartheid, and who fought the racist system at great cost to themselves and their families, and for my mother, Zubeida Moolla)
Pregnant, your husband on the run,
your daughter just a child, a few years old,
they hauled you in, these brutish men,
into the bowels of Apartheid’s racist hell.
They wanted information, you gave them nothing,
these savage men, who skin just happened to be lighter,
and White was right in South Africa back then.
You did not cower, you stood resolute,
you, my mother, faced them down, their power,
their ‘racial superiority’, their taunts, their threats.
You, my mother, would not, could not break,
You stood firm, you stood tall.
You, like the countless mothers did not break, did not fall.
You told me many things, of the pains, the struggles,
the scraping for scraps,
the desolation of separation
from your beloved children,
by monstrous Apartheid, by brutish men,
whose skin just happened to be lighter.
You told me many things, as I grew older,
of the years in exile, of the winters that grew ever colder.
You were a fighter, for a just cause,
like countless other South African women,
you sacrificed much, you suffered the pangs,
of memories that cut into your bone, your marrow,
you resisted a system, an ideology, brutal and callous and narrow.
Yes, you lived to see freedom arrive, yet you suffered still,
a family torn apart, and struggling to rebuild a life,
all the while, nursing a void, that nothing could ever fill.
I salute you, mother, as I salute the nameless mothers,
the countless sisters, daughters, women of this land, who fought, sacrificing it all by taking a moral and principled and valiant stand.
I salute you, my mother, and though you have passed, your body interred in your beloved South African soil,
you shall remain, within me, an ever-present reminder,
of the cost of freedom, the struggles, the hunger, the toil.
I salute you!
Viva the undying spirit of the women Viva!
(for the brave women of South Africa, of all colours,
who fought against racial discrimination and Apartheid)
No doubt you will treasure that letter along with some wonderous memories. All the best, Léa
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indeed Léa – much treasured. Thank you and warmest wishes from sunny South Africa
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I send you wishes from France, alas it is cooler here and windy. 😉
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😊🌻✌
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😊📚✌
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✌🌻😊
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Beautiful and just touching ❤
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Thank you so very much. Deeply appreciated and humbled.
Peace and Equality for All ✌
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✌
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✊
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hi there Afzal ,the letter you have is a treasure ,i’m absolutely stoked you have that treasure to hold on to. kindest regards bg 🙂😎🙂
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Thank you my dear friend – deeply humbled and appreciate your warmth and kind and generous sentiments.
Peace ✌
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I have no words for how beautiful and moving this is. With all of my heart, thank you for your passion. You are making a powerful difference in this world.
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Thank you, Jennifer, for your heartwarming and kind words. It is deeply touching to know that my scribble touched you. We are all interconnected and share similar love and caring and compassion and empathy. May we always strive to nurture the positive aspects of our shared human nature. Once more your warmth touches me profoundly and I thank you beyond measure for your inspiring sentiments. My very warmest of wishes to you and to all those dear to you.
Peace and Equality for All ✌
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Thank you Afzal! You have a beautiful heart. Richest blessings to you and yours as well! 🤗
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Thank YOU, dear Jennifer. Lots of love.
Peace ✌
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I am so moved by this, that it is hard to find the words. This is not adequate but I want to say that this is real love, and real strength. The kind of strength I wish to attain in my life.
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Thank you so very much for your very generous words of warmth – they leave me deeply moved and touched. Love, especially in the time of terrible adversity is always something truly profound. Your words convey a strength you already have – and so I wish you ever more strength in the tomorrows yet to unfurl. once again thank you very much. My very warmest wishes to you and to all those dear to you.
Peace and Equality ✌
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Just wonderful, Afzal. I am at a loss for words.
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Thank you so very much as always dear dear friend. Your sentiments touch me deeply. My very warmest of wishes.
Peace and Equality for All ✌😊
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You are most welcome. By best to you! 🙂
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Peace ✌🌻😊
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Overwhelming 😔
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very kind of you. deeply appreciated
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