IT’S the beginning of spring – the birds are singing and the trees are in bloom.
This is an exciting time when new things start to grow.
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Spring Day always takes me back to the magic of the past – an exciting time growing up as a young boy in the rural heart of Zululand.
In the place where I was born, there was no running water or electricity, and people herded cows for a living.
Spring Day was one of the most magical and exciting days of the year.
From young to old, we all shared food, drinks and played indigenous games – and, of course sang songs together until dark.
It was a special day – food, music and everything in-between had to be ready and prepared in advance.
After all, the day only came once a year so we went all out.
I still remember my grandmother’s morning call the day before as she checked if all our new ‘church clothes’ were ironed and hung, and that our shoes were polished and spotless.
There was nothing she loved more than showing off her smartly-dressed grandchildren to her friends.
Believe it or not, she actually thought she had the greatest grandchildren, better than those of any other gogos in the area, and she wasn’t shy about telling them so.
When we went to bed the night before, I had butterflies. I couldn’t contain my excitement about showing off my new outfit to my friends.
As a boy I was very shy, but on Spring Day, when I was all dressed up, I was a chatterbox oozing with confidence and excitement.
School will definitely be different, and if you were lucky, you ended up dancing with your crush – that beautiful girl that every boy in the community liked.
Maybe, just maybe, if you were really lucky, she might hold your hand and make your day.
But it was more than just new clothes. It was about how as the community came together to share in the festivities.
There was no fear of any incidents, no children went missing, and no one was stabbed – just innocent fun.
We treated each other like family, visited each other’s houses and ate biscuits until we had stomach cramps.
After the festivities we had important tasks – to fold and pack our church clothes neatly inside gogo’s old kist and, just because it was Spring Day, didn’t mean we had to forget about our daily duties of locking up the family’s goats, washing our socks and fetching water
Now, years later, my heart weeps when I realise how things have changed.
It has become a time to show off for many young people. They consume alcohol like there is no tomorrow. Sometimes, sadly, there is not.
Liquor shops double or triple their profits during this time. The youth go through so much trouble to exhibit a lavish lifestyle they can’t even afford.
These days, what used to be a greatest time has turned into reports of shocking murder cases and rape incidents.
People do not have that old spirit of ubuntu, where neighbours treated each other like one big family.
As we begin the spring season today, I long for those old days and I am searching for the way back to that magical time – a simple, but exciting period.
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