Reflections by Nano

So someone asked me to expand on my complicated dad experience that I made mention of in the previous post😅 Hehehe...I would need a whole day for that but here's a brief summary. Now I've come to believe that a sense of humour is a must for survival. We have to just laugh at ourselves sometimes, even our tragic mistakes, embracing them as part of the intricate human experience. Our parents, just like us, are only human. They make their share of mistakes, sometimes very grave ones at that, but we love and honour them nonetheless. My mother was my personal hero, the strongest and bravest woman I've ever known. She went above and beyond and sacrificed so much to give us a better life than she had had. She was beautiful and feisty and took no nonsense from anyone, especially the men in her life. There was never a dull moment with her. My beloved mother had a colourful interest in men, as do I apparently. So while dating a boy from her "hood", we'll call him...

Earlier today I had an intense and very emotional conversation with my sister. There are crucial family discussions that we should’ve had long ago or should be having on a regular basis for healing and closure, but we keep holding back. Quite frankly, there are too many black people who are emotionally and mentally scarred from generations of varied atrocities, yet we soldier on with gaping wounds (partly our fault and partly society) and we wonder why the black "man" or a lot of black families are in such dysfunction. But our conversation was a more personal one. I mentioned in the blog post before this one that our late mom died from HIV/AIDS related sickness. This information shocked my sister, Mbali, who was barely 9 when mom passed away. Here I was thinking we all just knew this but chose not to talk about it. Of course, mom had never sat us down and admitted it, but all the signs were there. I naturally assumed the whole family put two and two together…but was too ...

Say what you want about Christians being hypocrites and not practicing what they preach, or that they don’t make a relevant impact on society, but I beg to differ.  I’ve been blessed enough to see and experience a very different and most life-changing narrative. I’ve seen churches and Christians feed the poor, building schools and educating children, changing individuals’ lives, building healthy families and communities, and making a meaningful impact in the marketplace. I was just talking to a friend about this and ended up recalling two amazing people who touched my life in an incredibly profound way. Lusanda and Mahlatse Winston Mashua. As students at UKZN, Westville, we had the privilege of having them as our campus pastors for a few years. A young couple who “gave up their lives” to serve students (knowing full well that there’s no financial gain in campus ministry). Yet they tirelessly devoted their love, energy, wisdom and resources to sow into the future leaders t...