I’m back after two weeks in South Africa.
Two weeks of sunshine and blue skies. The late spring weather in the Western Cape was still finding its summer footing. Consequently, it varied from cold, windy, warm, baking hot and cloudy – fortunately not all on the same day!
The trip was both exhilarating and sad.
Sad that some people, rocks on the canvas of my life, are no longer with us. For more than twenty years my brother- and mother-in-law were part and parcel of the scene whenever I visited the Cape. I missed them and felt their departure much more keenly there than here.
Sad that older relatives and friends are markedly older and more frail.
Sad that so much of the country’s infrastructure has deteriorated, especially government structures and
Exhilarating that the oldies are still full of dreams, desires and irrepressible zest for life.
Exhilarating that the opposition government and people are demanding that government institutions clean up their act.
Exhilarating that wonderful new ideas are taking root and spreading worldwide, like The Street Store. The world’s first rent-free, premises-free, free ‘pop-up clothing store’, found on the streets.
Exhilarating that so many people and institutions work for the betterment of others. I am especially thinking of AIMSSEC* which provides sustainable mathematical teaching for disadvantaged communities and E-T-E, Empowerment Through Education which aims to sponsor the complete education, Grade 1 through tertiary education, of selected children from two pre-primary schools in Cape Town’s South Peninsula.
Exhilarating that despite what is happening in the government and associated organisations, there are plenty of vibrant and growing businesses. The wheels of agriculture continue to turn. Bales and bales of hay are testimony to a good harvest. The vineyards are full of promise. Summer fruit, berries and avocadoes (Yum!) are plentiful and affordable.
Exhilarating that life continues. It is great to be served by all and any member of society: at the bank, in the shops, at the police station, and in restaurants. Where twenty-five years ago you would see only white faces doing certain jobs, now anyone regardless of race or colour does that job. It is heart-warming to see the people of South Africa interacting and getting on with life. Street vendors compete with supermarkets. Road markings get a fresh lick of paint in the streets. Trees get felled. The police do their thing.
And so does Nature.
The mountains are as majestic as ever. Vineyards as far as the eye can see. Big blue skies stretch all the way to meet the ocean. Mile upon mile of golden-brown wheat stubble, evidence of an abundant harvest.
It is SO easy to feel at one with Nature.
For me, the mountains and the expanse of the big blue sky have always held a constancy. You could rely on them. They would always be there. They just ARE.
As if saying despite what is going on, the drama in your life, the drama in the country, the drama in the world, there is a constancy that is always there. A solidness and knowing that is all pervasive; that that alone is real and the rest transitory and of no consequence.
I find great comfort in that. It is like the stillness and the space from which all activity arises. You can tap into it any time you wish and come away refreshed and restored.
There in the Western Cape, surrounded by mountains, oceans and big skies, it is as though that stillness and space are in your face. A constant reminder that peace and stillness surround you and are easily accessible if only you’ll stop; notice; acknowledge and allow that stillness to penetrate your busyness and agitated mind.
Always being conscious of it is like being in a constant state of awe. It is humbling. It is like living in prayer.
I miss it already…
*AIMSSEC African Institute for Mathematical Sciences Schools Enrichment Centre
