Colonials and Colonists

A new buzzword--  Decolonisation.  Actually this word is not at all new to me, It was very popular in Zambia in the sixties and seventies. It is always evoked when people want to change names of public buildings and streets. I approve of it in this context. We don't want to be reminded by signposts and maps of many of the rather awful people who have given their names to avenues and airports. Decolonising school and University curricula is also  justified. There is probably too much emphasis on European literature and African History should be taught far more from an African point of view than it is at present. But nowadays  colonist  colonialist   colonisation. have become dirty words. A lot of bad things have been perpetrated by colonists in the past, of course, but I am afraid very often anti-colonial is used to mean  not against being taken over and exploited by foreigners, but actually simply anti-white.

I have recently read the opinion that it is important to define what a colonist is. My dictionary simply defines a colonist as somebody living in a colony, which in turn is defined as a settlement abroad controlled by the founding country.How does a colony come to be and how does somebody become a colonist. A group of people might be sent out (as some of ancestors were sent to the island of St Helena) to establish a settlement which would be a colony of their mother country. The land might be uninhabited like St Helena was, or there might have been other people already living there, but it would be land that had not previously belonged to those who were colonising it. So you might define a colonist as someone who settles on land that did not previously belong to him. An appropriator of
land.in other words.

White settlers  in many cases, simply moved onto land in various parts of Africa, built houses and farmed land.. These certainly fulfill that  definition. There are also those who have acquired land through conquest. British people have been very successful in doing this. One can  also say that white people from the Western Cape colonised most of Transkei and the Eastern  Cape. I believe that  people who are now using the term, think of a colonist as a white person who has settled on land that did not belong to him(but probably to an innocent black person) However the definition above can also apply to Zulus who in the past acquired land through conquest, and what about the numbers of  people from the Eastern Cape who have settled on land in the Western parts of this country that never belonged to them. So if you are deriding colonists and colonisation (and in fact there is good reason for deploring the exploitation that has accompanied colonisation) you ought to refine the definition and say exactly which colonists you are talking about.

Fear of Poetry

Is there a word for this condition like claustrophobia - fear of small spaces. There should be. It appears to be widespread. In Evergreen and surrounds it is almost epidemic.   People who will discuss politics, philosophy and even literature come all over trembly when poetry is mentioned.
At this old age complex we have several clubs which hold regular meetings. The most well attended is the Knitting circle, but there are also Bridge groups and Canasta groups, a Book Club and a Photographic society. The Management, through the staff at reception, put up notices on a notice board and send out notices of the meetings of all these clubs,  All these, except the Poetry Club. For quite a long time there has been a regular poetry meeting on the third Wednesday of the month. Every month I remind staff at reception to publicize this. Every month they forget. Perhaps this is not deliberate, but a expression of a sort of subconscious fear.

There seems to be an of avoidance of poetry almost an hostility towards poetry that is very hard to understand. Here we have a very adequate in-house library which is in constant use. Not all of us watch TV all the time. There are  very many a readers and to judge by the books that have been donated by residents,  many readers who are knowledgeable and discriminating.when it comes to literature. Why then this resistance to poetry? Is it that they think poetry has nothing to say to them or that they  are afraid of what it might have to say to them? Or is it just a reaction to the boring way that poetry is taught in schools?

I have just completed an online course in Modern American Poetry(Modpo) and enjoyed it, so when I found that there were some short courses to fill in the time between the main course, I decided to try one of them. (a short course on John Ashbery's poems) After a few weeks of this course, I am beginning to understand the attitude of my fellow residents. Most of the poems in this course are quite obscure. I  enjoy reading them, for the imagery and the musicality, but have very little idea of what they are about. But the long involved discussions by fellow students are just too much for me to take. I am obviously not cut out for literary studies. Reading poems, even reading them a few times over to get the flavour of them better, which is what sometimes do in our sessions,, is great, but tearing them apart in order to write long screeds about them is just boring to me. As a poet I want my poems to be read and enjoyed, of course, but I don't think I fancy having them dissected.

What I enjoy is going to Poetry readings like Off the Wall, or the Poetry evening at Joon Cafe in Muizenberg, These provide a platform for those who write poetry. People come to read their poems and listen to the poems of others without discussion or judgement. Some poems are better than others, some are very good indeed, but everyone comes to read and to listen and simply to enjoy the evening. Those who find poetry threatening, should come to one of these events, I'm sure it would  change their minds.

Beginning of this New Year

For me this time, just after the holidays is like a hiatus, a time of  blank diary pages and silent telephones. Everyone has left Cape Town or so it seems to me. In fact to judge by the roads, everyone has come to Cape Town from  all over the country. But this influx of visitors only means that I stay at home rather than driving anywhere, because driving is so stressful. The other day we traveled to Fish Hoek so slowly that we were overtaken by a man walking next to a toddler on a tricycle.

During this very peaceful period, before the world wakes up and gets back to work again, I should be getting down to work myself and doing some serious writing. I have been somewhat discouraged lately, because I have not been very successful in getting work published, but I have just read a very inspiring article written by a writer with a similar problem. She complained to a more successful friend who gave the following advice. "Don't aim to get your work accepted. Aim to get 100 rejection slips" You  have to work very hard to do this, but you have a very good chance of succeeding and you also have definitely increased your chances of getting an acceptance.

Writers, particularly poets, should remember that we are not in this game for the money. No one makes a living out of writing verse. Neither are we in it for the glory and fame. I know dozens of poets living nearby, talented, gifted poets, but none of my other friends have heard of them.
So why do we write stories and compose poems? We write, just because we love to write.

New Year

I see on Face Book my memory for today is the losing of my blog. (that happened a long time ago)  When I saw this post it  reminded  me that I had not posted anything in my blog this year. I had not been inspired to write anything, an indication that I was feeling low and  did not think  anything worth writing about'

The year started rather sadly, with my daughter Eleanor  and her husband Andreas leaving for Namibia and Luke going back to George, with some problems too. Amanda and Carlyle had already left, Danielle was back at work and,of course,very busy. Nothing much was happening here to distract me .Here is a gloomy poem about it.

JANUARY

After the flush of holidays the tide  recedes

 leaving the  beach exposed and litter-strewn,

bleached  grey under a smoke-stained sky.

I walk alone beside the shallow waves

 barefoot through rough and gritty sand

 dragging behind  me memories

and thoughts of joyful days.

The New Year splashes icy over  me,

its taste metallic, bitter on my tongue.

But now things are improving. Evergreen Choir practices have started up again. The first U3A meeting was most entertaining and enlightening(more about this later) and My old friend Pinkie(Elizabeth) Hulbert has come to stay nearby in the St James Hotel. She actually stayed a few days with me first because her luggage and  furniture hadn't arrived, It only got  to Cape Town three days after she did. 

The worst thing about the new year has been the fires. They have been particularly widespread this year. The dry weather and the strong winds have made ideal conditions for \veld fires. Smoke from fires as far away as Paarl reaches us here. Everybody is sure they e been deliberately set, but the culprits are never found. If only a band of dedicated fire-spotters like the shark-spotters could be employed. I'm sure it would actually save money. After the towers used for spotting fires in the plantations round George were abandoned, fires were much more frequent and a lot of timber was lost. 

Old Age Revisited

The talk at the last U3a meeting was most entertaining. Rayne Stroebel, from an organisation called Eden Alternative(SA) told us about aging and how to prevent it, (or rather how to slow it down.) His contention is that it is the perception of old age rather than the actual condition that causes most of the problems.  I thought his presentation excellent, but a bit over the top. I mean that certain aspects seemed to me to be exaggerated.  For instance I can't believe that life expectancy has increased as much as he claims. People in the first world may be living longer, but I don't think many of us are going to be living to 130 whatever certain statistics may say.
These points, however, were worth considering:-
a)There is no need for the rapid deterioration often seen when someone goes into an old age home.
b)When one is treated as old and incompetent one begins to believe this assessment of oneself and acts accordingly. c)There are certain factors that cause more rapid decline.
Triggers of rapid decline  are:
1.Falls. After a fall very many old people become much less mobile or even bed ridden. He also says that it is not only a fall itself but the fear of falling.that causes over-cautiousness and reluctance to try anything.  Exercises to improve balance and strength can certainly help here.  I always say there is a difference between falling and "having a fall" People at Evergreen "have a fall" and are never the same again. I fell by the dam at Silvermine a few weeks ago when the dog pulled me over and I only had a few scratches to show for it. Is this because I fall differently? I don't know, but I do know that I don't usually hurt myself when I trip and fall, but many people break bones when this happens.
2, Incontinence. There can be a number of reasons for this but people are often too embarrassed to talk about it or ask for medical help. It can lead to people not wanting to go out and can also lead to bladder infections and some of these infections can have  symptoms  that can lead to an incorrect diagnosis of dementia. (something that I was quite unaware of)
3. Over medication. All medicines have side effects and when several are taken every day there are bound to be unwanted effects. Often old people have been prescribed so many different drugs that they are in a half-dazed state most of the time. Medicines should be periodically checked and monitored
4., Being with negatively motivated people. A positive attitude is very important. Being surrounded by poeple who have a negative attitude can hasten the aging process.
5. Anxiety. Anxiety about health, finances, physical security can all contribute to premature aging.

I think this will be the last post in 2016.  there have been so many negative comments about this year.  It seems to have  been a very unpopular 12 months. For me, though it has been great. Except for becoming very sick and being carted off to hospital early on in the year.(just after Easter) it has been particularly full of happy events.

First, Brent and Trish came to visit. They stayed in the Evergreen visitors flat ( now no longer available) which was ideal. We had a very happy two weeks together. Then Danielle and I brought out my third book of poems. I am particularly proud of the cover design which features Danielle's thread art. In August Stephanie, Jane and I went to McGregor for the poetry festival. That was a very good weekend. Steph and I were quite successful with our combined presentation. We had the most appreciative audience we could have wished for.  Soon after that thee was my trip to Hogsback. Then the most exciting thing to have happened. The acquiring of a new Grandchild,. Dorothy's younger daughter, Amanda got in touch with us.after all these years. Luke was the one contacted first. I never expected this to happen. First we sent messages and e-mails  and then we had the joy of meeting her and spending Christmas together.  Eleanor and Andreas were here for Christmas too. What a very happy time!

Eleanor expressed what I  think we all experienced. She said that meeting Amanda was not like meeting someone new. It felt as though we had known her always. It was a pity that she and her partner, Carlyle couldn't stay longer, but I am sure they will come here again. I am glad that Amanda and Danielle, the two granddaughters who are much of an age are such good friends.

RAIN AT CHRISTMAS TIME

After the drought when

the edges of leaves on the sage bush

start to curl, the daisies die

my lawn  turns  to dust and straw

and everything is dry and grey,

all unexpected there comes

the blissful rain,

splashing the windscreen

filling the dogs’ bowls

washing the  potted pelargoniums,

and we collect in a small crowded studio

come together today, damp and laughing from

across the town, across the country

and across the world

Those in Authority

I was reminded in church today, that we are asked to pray for those in authority and also of a text in Paul's letter to the Romans in which we are told to obey those in authority because they have been placed there by God. If this is what we are told to do, I suppose we must do so, however much we may question God's reasoning and think that He has made a number of awful mistakes. It is hard to know how to pray. I would love to tell the Lord exactly what to do with those who are at present running our country. Without wishing anybody actual harm, it would be nice if most of  them would just quietly disappear. but it is obvious that I should not pray even for something as mild as that. I shall pray, however, with a clear conscience, for malice, greed and corruption in high places to come to an end.