Over the weekend, Sunday Times columnist Fred Khumalo published a piece that compared his first visit to a Greek restaurant – which left him shaken, as plates flew all around – to journalist Narissa Subramoney’s haste to conclude that president Jacob Zuma had accidentally fallen at his recent wedding. Subramoney, it seems, doesn’t know her Zulu customs too well. Ask before you assume! is Khumalo’s lesson:
Back in the ’80s when darkies dining in white suburbia were still a rarity, one of the magazines I was freelancing for commissioned me to do a review of a Greek restaurant in Durban.
It will probably sound silly to the born-frees who don’t know what it was like then, but it took a lot of agonising on my part to agree to the assignment: I just couldn’t see myself dining at a restaurant owned and patronised by white people.
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When, as a teenager, Oscar Pistorius was caught sneaking into a girls’ school, his punishment was two months’ ballet classes with the very same girls – which must have been quite a challenge for the budding young athlete, bending into a plié on prosthetic legs!
He calls himself “other-abled” or “differently abled” rather than “disabled”, with good reason: Pistorius has single-handedly (or double-prosthetic-leggedly?) changed athletics, by challenging to compete in standard IAAF events, including the Olympics. It’s been a see-saw affair, with scientists lining up on both sides of the issue, some saying Pistorius gains no advantage from his famous “blades”, other saying his advantage must rule him out (in a very ironic twist) of non-disabled sports.
In this wide-ranging podcast interview with the BBC, Pistorius talks about all aspects of his life, including the latest opinions on his blades. Get to know this mature and personable young athlete:
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Chris Barron’s Sunday Times obituary for author Izak de Villiers, who passed away last month:
Izak de Villiers, who has died in Johannesburg at the age of 73, was the editor of the Afrikaans Sunday newspaper Rapport.
He was also a dominee, a published poet – considered by some to be the best mystical poet in Afrikaans – and a prolific author. He wrote 54 books, including five of poetry and one on depression.
He also composed a number of hymns that were included in the hymn book of the Dutch Reformed Church in the 1970s.
De Villiers was born in Paarl on July 30 1936 and attended Paarl Gymnasium, a school for which he maintained a lifelong passion.
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Fred Khumalo hugely enjoyed Happy Ntshingila’s memoir Black Jerusalem, which recalls the key moments in the establishment and growth of Herdbuoys, the world-beating advertising agency. He enjoyed an especially good guffaw at Ntshingila and Co’s gaffes involving a certain King of the Zulus:
Lesson number one: don’t mess with the king of the Zulus, if you are a South African who aspires to some power and influence in business and society.
Many businessmen, trying to penetrate the black market and who forgot to treat the king with due courtesy and respect, have over the years burnt their fingers.
Remember when the lottery authorities launched their marketing campaign under the slogan Tata machance, tata mamillions?
The king and his subjects objected loudly to grammatical errors in what was sold as a Zulu slogan. The correct slogan should have been thatha ama-chance (which in itself is not pure Zulu).
Anyway, the Lotto administrators had to quietly resort to a new advertising jingle.
The book I’ve just finished reading, Black Jerusalem, by advertising guru Happy Ntshingila, amplifies the influence that the king has over such matters of public discourse.
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Fred Khumalo’s riveting memoir, Touch My Blood, has been adapted for the stage by James Ngcobo, the actor and director perhaps best known for playing the part of Mojo Khumalo in the SABC2 series Stokvel.
The play is now on at the Market Theatre in Johannesburg, running most nights except Mondays, with Bheki Mkhwane in the lead role as a young Fred Khumalo charting a dangerous path out of township life.
Says Ngcobo of his play:
“This is a tale of a young man growing up in Hammersdale Township, just outside Durban. Through him we are taken back to the vibrant eighties – when every young man worth his salt had the afro, the bell-bottomed trousers and platform shoes that went alongside a time of fear and madness, and the division (both political and racial) that shook that part of Durban. Touch My Blood allows you to heal; it rewinds the tape, allowing you to witness some of what happened in South Africa. You’re not only left with anger, but shake your head and laugh.”
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Izak de Villiers, “godsman/persman wat ‘n reputasie opgebou (het) as ‘n formidabele vakman/digter”se bundel outobiografiese vertellings, Strooidak en toring, verskyn binnekort.
Elmari Rautenbach het by De Villiers gaan kuier in Saxonwold, Johannesburg. In ‘n atikel in Rapport Boeke, haal sy verskeie bekendes sy mening oor De Villiers aan, insluitende Dalene Matthee, Hanlie Retief, FW de Klerk en oud-Sarie redakteur, Fritz Joubert:
Sy ma het hom Skapie genoem. Daar was geen ander kinders nie. Maar al het hy grootgeword “met blommetjies en breiwerk” en ’n groot, sagte ma wat die huis se geldsake streng bestuur en elke maand haar “lam” – die pa van die huis en keldervoorman by die KWV – sakgeld uit sy eie salaris betaal het, was daar van kleins af ’n onhebbelikheid, ’n dwarstrekkerigheid omtrent die jonge Izak Louis de Villiers.
Hy was vyf toe sy ma hom een middag roep om tydens een van haar gesogte Paarl-high teas “vir die tannies” te kom klavier speel. Stienie de Villiers was in die woorde van een van Izak se oud-onderwysers “a remarkable woman, always busy in the church and charities and a fabulous cook”. Dié middag het die tafel weer gekreun onder die melktert, witkoek, kolwyntjies, ingelegde vye en soetbitter nartjies in stroop – alles voorgesit met blink apostellepeltjies en vurkies. Die ouderwetse seuntjie se klaviertalent is geesdriftig toegejuig. Toe sê hy sommer ’n resitasie ook op. Weer applous. Hy kan hulle nog ’n “triek” wys, sê hy en draf weg om sy twee magnetiese hondjies te gaan haal. Op die glasblad van die koffietafel laat hy die hondjies draai en dans. Toe klik hy die magneetjies teen mekaar en vra: “Wat dink die anties doen die hondjies?” Nee hulle weet nie. “Wel,” sê die klein voordragkunstenaar alwetend, “hulle twee naai.”
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Izak de Villiers, welkbekend as digter en skrywer, uitsaaier, TV-persoonlikheid, tydskrif- en koerantredakteur, kyk in sy sewentigerjare terug op ’n lewe en loopbaan wat met hoogtepunte besaai is.
Meestal is hierdie los vertellings gefokus op spesifieke mense: Pa en Ma in die Paarl, groot figure onder wie hy gewerk het, soos Piet Cillié en adv Lang Dawid de Villiers, of wat sy pad as joernalis gekruis het, soos Jimmy Kruger, PW Botha, FW de Klerk, Margaret Thatcher, Jimmy Carter, Dalene Matthee, Audrey Blignault, die redakteur van Prawda, en talle ander.
Hy draai nie doekies om nie, vertel uitgesproke en eerlik van die goeie en die slegte van mense, ook van homself. In die proses kom ’n skerp beeld van ’n sensitiewe en hoogs intelligente mens na vore, soms iemand met profetiese visie, soms iemand wat nie mooi inhaak by die wêreld nie, maar altyd iemand wat deur die wêreld loop en soek na antwoorde. As ’n binne-blik op Naspers, van iemand wat terselfdertyd van die binnekring én ’n buitestander was, is Strooidak en toring noodsaaklike leesstof vir wie in die laaste jare van die ou bedeling bewustelik gelewe het.
Uit Strooidak en toring
Op ’n dag in die laat veertigerjare het ons dominee my ma kom vra of sy ’n besoekende “spesiale prediker” vir ’n week sou kon huisves. Daardie tyd het die kerk “spesiale predikers” gehad, gewoonlik uiters toegewyde manne wat die Woord kon bedien soos min ander. Waar hulle gepreek het, was die kerke saans stampvol. Mense het in massas tot bekering gekom of hul geloof weer vernuwe.
Ma was gewillig om die dominee te huisves, maar toe voeg ons eie predikant ’n klein voorwaarde by: die dominee bly nie graag waar klein kinders hom kan steur nie. En waar hoenders is wat soggens kraai, of raserige honde, wil hy ook nie bly nie omdat hy snags tot laat werk. Dr. J. C. G. Kotzé.
Hoogs eksentriek. Ek het sedertdien self al ’n stel of twee met ’n hospita se lastige kroos of honde afgetrap, so, terugskouend het ek simpatiemet sy versoek.
En so ’n reeks preke tap jou emosioneel. Sodra jy sleg begin slaap, kan jy maar vergeet van “met jou hele hart” preek. Ons besoekende prediker was glo so ’n mens.
Ma het nagedink en nee gesê. Haar hoenders was te verkies bo die dominee se besoek en om my hond stil te hou, was ook nie haar forte nie, jammer. Ma het onderneem om te help om vir hom lekker kos te maak. Die besoekende leraar het toe by twee ouerige mense tuis gegaan en elke aand skitterende preke gelewer. My eerste gewaarwording van hom was hoe bleek hy lyk in sy swart toga. Hy was sy lewe lank nie die gesondste van mense nie. Maar van sy preke daardie week onthou ek nou nog. Hy sou ’n geweldige invloed op my latere lewe hê.
Boekbesonderhede
Daar’s al baie met Antoinette Pienaar gepraat oor die Griekwa-heler by wie sy in die Karoo gaan leer het. WILLEMIEN BRÜMMER het oom Johannes Willemse self gaan opsoek en met hom gepraat oor kruie, watermense en sy oupa wat hom in ’n leeu kon verander.“Ek het van Vrydag af gevoel in my hand in: nee, die mense is op pad,” sê oom Johannes Willemse toe ons Maandagoggend voor sy wit huisie op Theefontein stilhou. Dis ’n blouer-as-blou, snikhete dag. Die goue son aan die oom se kraag is ’n miniatuur van sy moordende maat wat netnou eers uit sy verduistering gekom het. Om ons is die windhonde, die hoenders en die swart kat vreemd stil.
Die oom stap rustig nader, sy stem ’n eerbiedige fluistering: “Jy’t vanoggend omtrent nie eens ’n voëltjie gehoor in die son se verduistering nie.” Hy lig sy hand in ’n halfmas-saluut. “Dis mos Godswerke dié . . . nie onse werke nie.”
Hy korrel met sy oog in die rigting van die Man-berg en die amper wolklose hemel daarbo. “Hy gaan reën vandag.”
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Please join us for these exciting RHS events at the 2009 Cape Town Book Fair.
SATURDAY 13 JUNE
Ways of Staying: A country that will not be forsaken
12:00-12:45
F6 – DALRO Forum
A discussion with Kevin Bloom, André Brink & Max du Preez chaired by Prof Leon de Kock. (In collaboration with Pan Macmillan)
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May 14 2009 saw Oscar Pistorius appear in front of a live audience in Cape Town, to talk about his new book with 567 Cape Talk presenter Soli Philander. Here is the broadcast of the event
