Compassion, honour, and heart

 

And so we have come to the start of yet another year. 48 winters have come and gone, and I remember many good and bad times. But this time of the year, I reflect on the good times. 

 

Camping weekends in Kareekloof. Early morning walks with my beloved father, listening to the baboons barking in the distance. Breakfast - like only my father can prepare - horse rides, water slides, and watching the night sky for satellites.

 

Bike rides. How I loved putting my arms around my father as I rode on the back of his bike. I must have been about six or seven years old when he bought his first motorbike. My helmet was blue - it has always been my favourite colour.

 

Performing arts is the core of my being. Some of my earliest memories are of my grandfather entertaining us with stories and songs and playing the harmonica. My father played the piano, and my mother the organ. One of ABBA's songs describes me: "Mother says I was a dancer before I could walk. She said I began to sing long before I could talk." (Thank you for the music, 1977.) I performed my first ballet Eisteddfod when I was four years old and sang my first concert solo when I was five. My sister, who is two years my junior, became my accompanist on the piano when she was eight. For 16 winters, the two of us entertained audiences in school concerts and at restaurants and led songs of worship in church. We also produced the family's annual Nativity play. 

Yellow roses. 26 winters ago, a young tenor gave me a yellow rose after a day's opera chorus rehearsals. Two winters later, I held a bouquet of yellow roses as we pledged to love each other for richer or poorer, in sickness or health, 'till death do us part. 

Theatre life. I work behind the curtains when I am not performing on stage. During our first five winters together, my husband and I sang in opera productions at the Pretoria State Theatre. Over the past 20 winters, I was primarily involved in producing concerts and operas and often worked as a stage manager, makeup artist, dresser, and props master.

Biota. I revere all forms of life. 30 winters ago, I started studying towards a Bachelor of Science degree with zoology and botany as my majors. Although I never completed my studies, nature has been an essential part of my life for as long as I can remember. My maternal grandfather taught me the art of hunting and catching fish for food. My maternal grandmother trained me to gather plants and fungi for medicine and cooking. I know how to interpret the signs when nature speaks and use her signals for survival and healing. I wish it was possible to live in a primitive communist society of hunter-gatherers.

My goal for the coming season is the same as it was for the past five winters - kindness towards all life forms. Behaving with compassion when engaging with people. Showing honour when using fauna and flora in preparing meals. Serving with heart when working with injured and abused animals. 

I ask for little else than stable health, steadfast companionship, regular income, and safe lodgings. And I wish you the same. So mote it be!