Proud to be a South African

There are few things that make one feel proudly South African. I lived in Cape Town for 5 years and that city showed me that Gauteng is by far more integrated than any other place in South Africa. May be I stand to be corrected on this one because my assumptions are based on only the cities I lived in like Port Elizabeth, Durban, Bloemfontein, and East London. Back in Jo’burg there is a group of 5 friends that I often see at Capellos, they are black, Indian and white and by the look of things I am the only one who see them that way. Every time when I see them having lunch together I just can’t help to think that this is what Biko, Tambo, Sobukwe, Mandela and others fought for.

What triggered this thought is what I saw in Qwagga centre in Pretoria yesterday. As we were leaving with my wife I heard a song “Sister Bettina”. This was a very popular song amongst the youth the last December (I must add that I hate the song… maybe I am getting old) when I looked behind me I was not prepared for what I was about to see, two young white boys about 17 /18 years were playing the song on their MP3 player or a cell phone and they were enjoying. I am sure they don’t know even a word from that song. I looked at them and for a moment I heard sister Bettina Rocking my world.

This was not for the first time I felt this way. In 1997/98 I was at SABC studios in Auckland Park when I heard Mandoza’s Nkalakatha rattling the roofs of SABC. I look at metro fm studio and the guys were just talking and I looked behind me Darren Scot on 5fm was dancing like crazy alone in the studio. When you look at small things like those it when you realise how lucky are we to be South African. Can you imagine if you were born in Serbia, DRC, Bangladesh or Somali? I don’t want to imagine what their children are going through. South Africa seems to be in the right direction even though the pace could be better. Remember Arno Castens rocking SOWETO? I was not there but for those who did go they enjoyed. I have every reason to believe that despite our differences SA still rock