WOMEN’S MONTH is a reminder of the selfless contribution made by many known and unsung heroines, in the birth of new South Africa.
Women have continued to play an important role in strengthening of this democracy.
It is a pity that a focus on women’s day tends to shine on known faces.
Many ordinary and wonderful women - on farms, in rural areas, squatter camps and small towns - who are pillars in their families, never get mentioned.
Some will never win any awards. Or be featured on Top Billing.
Paarl has many such selfless characters. My mother is one such individual.
Some will consider this piece of writing un-African. And maybe self-indulgent. Many are of the view; people are not supposed to be praised whilst still alive. But what is the point of writing brilliant memories to those who can’t hear or read them.
Thankfully this is not a eulogy, symbolising an end to a dream. It is neither a biography of my mother’s life. Her life cannot be written, but celebrated.
My writing is nothing but footsteps to retrace the hard and winding road travelled by her. It is to document the past and map forward the future.
My mother is no Winnie Mandela. No songs will be written about her. She won’t be mentioned by historians. Nonetheless, she is the light that continues to shine my path. An inspiration to my life.
Apartheid South Africa could not deter or stop her. She was a career woman before it became fashionable. She is no BEE. She took her bag and went to look for a job.
Rain or shine, she would take a bus from Mbekweni to town, so that she can put bread on the table. She would buy second-hand clothes in town and re-sell them in the township.
I remember walking with her, knocking from door to door, in the hostels. Friday was pay day for the contract workers. On good days, we would come back smiling. On other days, it was a struggle to get even a R50.
But it taught me the rewards of hard work, discipline and perseverance. Quitting was and still is not part of her vocabulary. She would say ‘lazy hands will bring you nothing’. Hard work killed no one.
Today people look at her life and think, she is lucky. They forget, she made her own luck. Life was never kind to her. She made her own lemonade. She never gave up on her dreams of a better life for her family.
My mother instilled in us the importance of putting God in our lives and everything we do. My parents made us realise, life is empty without HIM. The love of God, forbids us to judge others based on their skin colour. Human beings are the same.
We want the same thing – love, friendship, peace, good health, security and happiness. Thank you, mama, for your life. Happy women’s day!
Dr Lucas Ntyintyane
