We Say Enough!

Yesterday thousands of UCT students and staff marched in protest against the scourge of violence that has become part of our society. Marching does not seem like nearly enough to be doing but after witnessing the recent spate of violent crimes, I felt that I had to do something.

I was struck by a recent article in the newspaper which pointed out that a few years ago we were all shocked by the violent abuse and death of a young girl, Valencia Farmer, and yet here we are again in the same situation.

Carrying placards, mostly dressed in white, we marched and chanted, up from the middle campus to congregate on the Jameson steps on the main campus. When we were addressed by the vice-chancellor, amongst others, I couldn’t help thinking back to the struggle days. And, indeed, he reminded us that ordinary people had brought apartheid to an end and that it was time that we stood up again to bring about change.

We need to demand our rights, to make ourselves heard, to voice what it is we want the government that we elected to do. It is important to use whatever platforms that are available to us to get this message across and to keep up the momentum of what others are doing.

WE SAY ENOUGH. STOP THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND CHILDREN.

You may also like:http://saaray-livinginsa.blogspot.com/2013/01/stop-abuse.html

New Beginnings

"Every day have a little bird on your shoulder that asks, "Is today the day? Am I ready? Am I doing all I need to do? Am I being the person I want to be?" 

Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

It was pretty dark when I woke up just before six this morning. There was a gentle patter of rain on the tin roof over the stoep. I love that soft rain which sometimes falls in the summer time, as if it is coming to wash the heat and dust away. Now it is raining quite hard, big fat drops coming down as if there's a lot of cleansing to be done before we can start a new cycle. 

It has been quite a stormy year on many levels: hurricanes and elections in the US, violence all over Africa and the Middle East, protests in Russia and Greece, a landslide victory for Jacob Zuma, and the economies of many countries in Europe still reeling in the aftermath of the crises of a year ago. 

On a personal level, we and everyone we know, seem to have had an unusually busy year with little time to socialise or connect. Everything seems to have had a good shake up, and by time too. When things get shifted around, energy gets moving in places it might not have reached. 

Perhaps that's why I've done some shaking up of my own. After almost 30 years I am going back to university...I'm looking forward to the new year with a lot of excitement and just a tiny bit of trepidation... new beginnings bring hope and growth. I'm ready for some of that.