DAY 20:
Even though there were no alarms going off, I woke up at the same early hour as every other morning. I knew I didn’t have to get up today, and that was a great thought, but the day was beautiful, and Natasha was going to come and visit again, so I got going.
How fantastic to wake up to a fresh cup of coffee? Thanks Maria. Dante was also up early, and befriended another dog who seemed to live in the bush behind our room. He came looking for his sister a couple of times, but she only made an appearance much later, when she briefly stuck her head out from under the blankets, and then almost immediately crawled back.
Natasha arrived around 11am, and made us a killer breakfast of bacon, eggs, mushrooms, cheese and toast. Mmmmmmm. She also brought soup bones, and lovely stewing meat, which she prepared for the dogs. Think they love seeing her more than we do. We hung out till late afternoon, and she brought some newspapers, so we chilled, chatted, and just had a fabulous afternoon.
The rest of our day consisted of catching up on emails, phone calls, and packing. We got ourselves cleaned up, and ready for bed quite early, but I didn’t fall asleep till very late.
There was a lot said and done today that made me think. It’s so good sometimes, when the world and everything around you comes to a stand still. Good that there’s always that moment where you have time to reflect.
I wonder about many things. I wonder about the world that we live in, and I wonder if people are happy, and I wonder why they’re so angry. I’ve had angry moments in my life, many, but that road leads nowhere, besides, what in the world could be so horrible, as to make a precious gift such as LIFE, a misery?
I find it so difficult to read the newspapers, because it’s the most depressing, disheartening and desperate means of observing. Just glancing at the Rustenburg Herout, made me reaffirm what I believe in so much. The Government, any Government, is just a representative, defending a country’s economic and moralistic values. Strange how the majority of residents in some countries, do not support those values? Who maintains then, what those values should be, or how they should be interpreted?
When the hand of the law cannot be trusted, where do you go? When the system is cruel and unkind, what do you do? I understand, for the first time ever, how desperate an act of discrimination can make you feel, but I also know that nothing justifies killing someone, or waging war, or anything in the name of anger and revenge.
It would be quite extraordinary if we could all live in peace and harmony, but this will never be, as long as there is someone who is greedy, envious, jealous, or who seeks power, etc., etc. These emotions, and that is just what they are, should never have gotten so out of hand and so all consuming, to ruin lives, and leave stains of despair.
I have had a blessed and beautiful life thus far, and I am ever thankful for that. I have come to many a crossroads, and haven’t always chosen the right way, but because of that, I have had an unbelievable journey. Anything, be it the happiest moment of your life, or the most humiliating, or the saddest moment, it’s something to be savored, because tomorrow it’ll be gone, and there will never be another moment quite like it. To understand happiness I guess you really have to experience pain.
I have had the privilege to have interacted with many people in my life, and while some have been negative, they’ve all been significant, and make me who I am today. This is why I love and cherish every one of those people, who have left me with something to think about, or who have inspired me to do better, and who have granted me the opportunity to forgive, and to be forgiven.
We are all given the same opportunities, and to me that represents the ability to rise above one’s disabilities. A choice, in other words. I have to always remind myself of that, when I am faced with everyday life stuff, but there’s freedom in knowing that you make your own choices. It took a while to grasp, and I’m still learning, but what a revelation, and suddenly every day is a surprise.
Idealistic to think that a whole nation will wake up, knowing that the choices they make today, determines how tomorrow turns out.
These are just some of the things I wonder about, but I guess the beauty is to have something to believe in, something to reach for, to be an anchor for many and to have someone to lean on. Then it doesn’t matter what happens, but you know that nothing is impossible. That is why I love what I do so much. Every day, there is something new I learn about myself in terms of the impossible, and all of a sudden there are so many possibilities, and it doesn’t all revolve around myself anymore either, the more barriers I break down inside, the more available I become to others and live the life that was designed for me.
Okay, enough already.
Bed time, good night
Sweet dreams
