I have always heard stories about South Africa, mostly political, but I was young and such matters did not interest me in the slightest. I remember my cousins discussing these things at weddings, parties, holidays, and really just all the time. Back in 2013, my cousin married some white girl from The States and everyone met in her hometown for the wedding. Being in a family with multiple ethnicities, races, and cultures, a wedding is our chance to share our cultures with our new family. This wedding was my family's chance to share their endless stories and opinions about South Africa.
"Is this all they talk about?" I asked my youngest cousin, Taila. She was so knowledgeable when it came to government or politics, and she was only four years old. In the book, the author says "It’s weird to explain, but I just knew what to do. It was animal instinct, learned in a world where violence was always lurking and waiting to erupt. In the townships, when the police came swooping in with their riot gear and armored cars and helicopters, I knew: Run for cover. Run and hide. I knew that as a five year-old." This passage reminded me of Taila, even though she never had to experience something this severe, but it is just shocking to see something be so prevalent in a society that even children have an awareness or knowledge of what is happening before they are even old enough to be in school.
If you don't know South Africans, they love to party and that is exactly what we did. The wedding lasted from two in the afternoon to five in the morning(yes, really),and after the toasts dinner discussions were not about the couple, but rather about Mandela. When everyone got to our hotels that next morning everyone sat in the lobby and discussed the same topics instead of sleeping and recovering from their drunken state. Typically people have joyful conversations and focus on the celebration, but this was just another social gathering to get political. After seeing how my cousins were this incredibly occupied by a situation I knew nothing about, I had to listen.
I still didn't understand, mostly because I had never lived in Capetown with the rest of them, but after reading this book, I am seeing how much darkness there was. I have small memories of Cari and Adrian trying to educate me, but now I can actually process it and I see why they were always talking about this stuff. I never realized what my own family was going through and what consumed their minds, so I am thrilled that Trevor Noah is bringing these struggles to light.
I commented on Hailey and Osten's posts.
"Is this all they talk about?" I asked my youngest cousin, Taila. She was so knowledgeable when it came to government or politics, and she was only four years old. In the book, the author says "It’s weird to explain, but I just knew what to do. It was animal instinct, learned in a world where violence was always lurking and waiting to erupt. In the townships, when the police came swooping in with their riot gear and armored cars and helicopters, I knew: Run for cover. Run and hide. I knew that as a five year-old." This passage reminded me of Taila, even though she never had to experience something this severe, but it is just shocking to see something be so prevalent in a society that even children have an awareness or knowledge of what is happening before they are even old enough to be in school.
If you don't know South Africans, they love to party and that is exactly what we did. The wedding lasted from two in the afternoon to five in the morning(yes, really),and after the toasts dinner discussions were not about the couple, but rather about Mandela. When everyone got to our hotels that next morning everyone sat in the lobby and discussed the same topics instead of sleeping and recovering from their drunken state. Typically people have joyful conversations and focus on the celebration, but this was just another social gathering to get political. After seeing how my cousins were this incredibly occupied by a situation I knew nothing about, I had to listen.
I still didn't understand, mostly because I had never lived in Capetown with the rest of them, but after reading this book, I am seeing how much darkness there was. I have small memories of Cari and Adrian trying to educate me, but now I can actually process it and I see why they were always talking about this stuff. I never realized what my own family was going through and what consumed their minds, so I am thrilled that Trevor Noah is bringing these struggles to light.
I commented on Hailey and Osten's posts.
Comments
Though we are not related to anyone from South Africa, my family and I are close friends with the Norris family here in Texas. Mrs. Norris was born and raised in South Africa and actually met her husband, Mr. Norris, when he came to the country as a missionary! They have three boys and even though they were not raised in South Africa like their mom, they can easily pass-off as natives because they have so much knowledge!