Every day I listen to Dawie Roodt's take on the economy on RSG, followed by the news at 8 am. The Phala Phala updates and Julius El Capitan's next mission to disrupt. If I catch the morning show a bit earlier, there is usually a discussion about something interesting, like smuggling succulents and exotic animals to Asian countries.
This morning it was about the aardvark found on Milnerton beach and over one million succulents smuggled out of the Northern Cape.
Other topics include Eskom, the demise of our education, and young professionals leaving the country.
I've never considered leaving the country permanently, but I was a bit down after watching De Ruyter's full interview. South African people know we have corruption at most levels of government. However, after De Ruyter's account, I briefly considered packing my bags until I saw the French riots and heard we still believe in South Africa from a friend when asked if he has considered leaving.
Why do we still believe in Mzansi?
I stayed in Zanzibar for three years and experienced Kenya, Tanzania, and the north of Mozambique from an employee perspective. When friends asked me about the holiday vibe in Zanzibar, I told them, jokingly, I was not the right person to ask because I haven't holidayed in Zanzibar yet. I stopped saying it because it could come across as a tad obnoxious. Of course, there was a lot of truth in it.
A travel excursion and moving somewhere for work are different.
Yes, the exposure is the same, but not your relationship to what you see. When you travel to Zanzibar and explore the local villages, you will see no supermarkets and small spaza-like shops all selling Pringles and cookies from the middle east. There is no public cold chain. When orientating yourself in a new country where you get your food, suddenly rank high on things to figure out. Back to basics. Where can I get food? What is the right price for something? Do I pay cash, Mpesa, or will they have a card machine?
My wife bought a baby record book, in which we wrote down prices of things, who were the stars of the day, and one of the more profound questions was our wishes for him. He can then read it when he is older. Not disregarding travel or holidaying, one of my wishes is that he experiences a new country through the lens of moving there.
"However, researchers have recently discovered that new genes in the central nervous system turn themselves on when an organism is placed (or places itself) in a new situation. These genes code for new proteins. These proteins are the building blocks for new structures in the brain. This means that a lot of you is still nascent, in the most physical of senses, and will not be called forth by stasis. You have to say something, go somewhere and do things to get turned on. And, if not...you remain incomplete, and life is too hard for anyone incomplete. If you say no to your boss, or your spouse, or your mother, when it needs to be said, then you transform yourself into someone who can say no when it needs to be said. If you say yes when no needs to be said, however, you transform yourself into someone who can only say yes, even when it is very clearly time to say no. If you ever wonder how perfectly ordinary, decent people could find themselves doing the terrible things in the gulag camp guards did, you now have your answer." Page 212, 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos.
Enter Rassie Erasmus. In 2018, after a short run through Nungwi, Zanzibar north, I listened to one of the first interviews after Rassie took over as Springbok coach in 2018. The talk was about scrapping the 30 cap rule of 2017 and their new plans.
I have loved everything from his first interviews to winning the world cup, the Lions series, and his Twitter voice note to Nick Mallet.
"Just don't be boring." The advice Barry Diller (Expedia Group Chairman) gave Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber CEO, when he took over. "Dara, when you're on stage, it's not your job to inform. It's your job to entertain. Just don't be boring."
Rassie returned, brought new knowledge and more experience, and used it to improve a big love of South Africans, our rugby. Last year I had to google how our rugby competitions work, don't ask me to explain it. Some are upset about the Bulls and Stormers playing in a European competition, which doesn't make it European anymore, but that is how small the world has become.
People returning with a new take is why I still believe in SA.
Enjoy the new week!
Photo by Jacques Nel on Unsplash