"The word greatness
is used far too randomly, effortlessly and frequently by too many people who
cannot find the inclination to analyze the words they choose. But in isolated cases, with certain legends
of society, the word can never be used enough.”
A couple of
days ago we lost a true iconic name of the world to the sad but inevitable case
of father time creeping up on him.
Nelson Mandela was not just an iconic name, he was a person who stood up
for what he believed in and stated what he thought was the truth (as it
was). The consequences, like serving
nearly a quarter of his life imprisoned, took on a secondary concern in
comparison to what he stood for. Many
people could take a leaf out of his book by not living in trepidation of
stating words that are the truth.
I will never
claim to have a depth of knowledge in history, politics or civil rights acts,
but what I do know is there are occasional members of society whose sacrifices
have resulted in a better life for those birthed generations later, like
me. I was always a big fan of Nelson
Mandela, even as a kid who barely knew anything about his life in prison or the
reasons behind it. I guess the simple
daily gazing into my African father’s eyes, with similar features and identical skin tone to
Mandela, was enough resemblance to form an instant liking. My late father, although many years younger
and not even close to the severity of Mandela’s experience, lived through the
racist and discriminated days in the UK when he first came over on an immigrant
packed boat with barely an English sentence to put together. I’ll always remember him telling me about
particular politicians he would hear, crying out the words of “send them
back.” You can only imagine how scared a
young man in that situation must feel.
Without his courage to rise above this bigotry, I wouldn’t be sat here
today.
What stood
out since the confirmation of Mandela’s final breaths are the scenes seen on
television of the South African people.
I accept this is a cultural distinction to how we would respond in the
UK, but natives dancing in celebration of his life seems fitting in relation to
the character he portrayed to the world.
There never appeared any resentment on his face to the fact he had
wasted 27 years behind bars. To me, his
optimism shone through. He knew that
people all over the world, not only in South Africa, would benefit from a more
civilized existence due to his selfless ways.
This was enough to bring a glowing smile to his expression almost every
time he was seen.
What I liked
most about him comes from my own observational fascination of human
dynamics. Whether it was Muhammad Ali to
David Beckham, Barack Obama to Michael Jordan, they all looked in awe when in
his presence. But Mandela held no
arrogant demeanour when alongside their pronounced infatuation. He seemed like a genuine and positive guy
from next door who you could share a beer with and never be deemed inferior. He looked just as privileged to be with them.
I’ll never
forget the tear in my eye as he fulfilled his dream to be pitch side in
Johannesburg prior to the soccer World Cup Final in 2010. This wouldn’t have brought a smile to just
the 53 million South African inhabitants.
I sensed billions of people rejoiced in this moment.
Fortitude,
strength, honesty, fearless, positivity, friendly, approachable, likeable,
ignited and sacrificial are only a handful of words I use to describe the
legend of Nelson Mandela. It only
further illustrates how someone can balance characteristics, even as high
profile as he was, and still be a totally impressive and charming man. This is why people, women and men alike,
should take more time to get to know a person for how they come across or how
they act, instead of lazily going down the route of the easy and negative
perception of someone. Would a person
rather be in the company of a good looking man with matching impressive
personality, or an attainable looking man who acts in an unjustified arrogant
manner?
But this
post isn’t about any soap box for me to get on.
This is my own dedication to an icon who will never be forgotten. Like many old, frail, suffering and weak
people, he’s in a better place now.
Nelson Mandela may not be with us any longer, but his legacy will never
die.
Dedication
No comments:
Post a Comment