Nomhle’s Story

Nomhle Penelope Njokweni, 18
East Rand, South Africa

Nomhle is an 18-year-old girl who was orphaned by HIV/AIDS and poverty. She is currently a Youth Ambassador for the Heartbeat Project that works with orphans and vulnerable children in South Africa. Nomhle wants to be a lawyer when she completes her schooling. These are her thoughts on life and the future.

It is not what you have but who you have. In life, you can have fame and all the money in the world, but if you have no one to share it with you are the most poor. Empty.

Life hasn’t given me everything I want, but, instead, it took both my mother and father at the same time. Life then was so difficult. The four of us—my brother, my two sisters, and I—were left as a burden to my grandmother, who was also struggling to make ends meet. Now she had to look after us, with no money, food, or books for our education, and with no one to help us out. During that first year, I was hopeless and ready to give up on life. I was even starting to lose focus on my school work because of financial worries and constraints*.

But, after every storm again comes sunshine. My grandmother was introduced to the Heartbeat, a project which helped her to put food on the table, clothes on our bodies (especially school uniforms), and provide us with books and stationary. When I went there for the first time it was just a project in a small house in Katlehong. I soon realized that it was “home,” filled with love, caring, and support from my “Heartbeat family,” and a place where I felt love and safety. They taught me a lot about life, how to deal with the death of my parents, and helped me with my studies. They made me a stronger person, inside and out.

I know that life is not a fairy tale. You don’t live happily ever after. This is life, and it has its ups and downs—rough roads, smooth roads, difficult challenges, and easy challenges. You never know why God makes certain people part of our lives, and why God also has to take them away again. Recently, I lost the special light of my darkness. My grandmother died in my hands after a short illness. With my parents, it wasn’t easy losing them, but I didn’t have to watch as they left me. My mother died in the hospital after a short illness, and my father died in an accident at work a few weeks later. But my grandmother died at home, and I watched her take her last breath on earth. I held her in my arms, and I knew that the lord has given and now has taken again. I did not know why.

I now know that I’m not alone. Even after all this, there are people who love me, who will always be there. I know I can confide in them with anything and everything. Even though both my parents and my grandparents are gone, God made Heartbeat part of my life and they are my family now. My brother, my sisters, and I have a whole Heartbeat family. Now it is time to apply these lessons I learned from them: never give up my dreams and what I believe in, never say “I can’t” without even trying, and never lose my values of self-respect, discipline, and self-confidence. Those are the best lessons I ever received from them.

*Constraints: limits

My South Africa

Candace Jade Campbell, 15
Johannesburg, South Africa

The sun is shining brightly in the African sky, not a single cloud in sight, when we all pile into the car one Saturday morning. No one says a word. I am definitely excited about this journey.

Three hours later, we arrive at the large electric gate of the national park. We’re driving down the long dirt road, getting bored after five minutes of not seeing any animals, when out of nowhere a giant female elephant and her baby calf appear from behind a nearby tree! The mother stays close to her calf, being cautious of every move we make. You will never get a better photograph of African wildlife than in the middle of the Kruger National Park, the most beautiful game reserve I’ve ever seen.

That is the thing: living in South Africa is like living in two worlds. One world is the gorgeous African wildlife, and the other is the fun night life and excellent atmosphere of the cities. Living here is like having it all! You get the best of both worlds.

I guess living in such a beautiful country has its benefits. Living in South Africa might not be like living in America or the United Kingdom where famous celebrities live, but the people I look up to all live in this diverse country that millions call home. We have wildlife, shopping centers, schools, night clubs, office buildings, churches, etc. Why would I want to live anywhere else?

Living in South Africa is also a great privilege and opportunity if you are as passionate about sports as I am. We have such a variety of sports that everyone can find something they like and are good at. I believe sports in South Africa are not biased or based on your sex, but that they are fair and true. Racism is not an issue in South African sports; we have people of every race doing all different types of sports. My favorite sports to do are rowing, netball*, athletics, and cross country running. My favorite sports to watch either live or on television are rugby and soccer.

South Africa is currently preparing for the 2010 soccer World Cup. South Africans are really looking forward to this exciting event that, I believe, will improve what people think about South Africa. I am very passionate about sports, and would not play for any other country, even if I was paid!
I am proud to be a citizen of this country. Once a South African, always a South African, no matter what the circumstances!

Nkosi Sikelela Afrika
God bless Africa, now and forever.

*Netball: tennis

Our Rainbow Nation

Clarissa Enslin, 15
Johannesburg, South Africa

I stare at the bowl of multi-colored Smarties* and my mind starts to wonder about our Rainbow Nation. Our land is filled with many different people who come from different backgrounds.

He stands next to the side of the road with a cardboard sign in his hands. I wonder where he slept last night. Was he warm? Where is his family? Did he have anything to eat? He points up with his thumb as he waits for a taxi to stop. He’s on his way to a temple, a temple of praise and worship.

He sits in his car, smoking one cigarette after the other. His finger is tapping rhythmically on the steering wheel. Then the tapping comes to an end. His cell phone is ringing. He answers with irritation, a few curse words escaping his mouth. Who could it be? His boss? His child? Or maybe his wife?

Around the corner walk a mom and her two children. She pulls their uniform tight, ensuring they look their best. She speaks gently in their ears then disappears after giving them each a kiss on their cheek. She has been up since four o’clock, stoking* the fire. She cleans the one-room house, rolls up the sleeping mats, and gets ready for a long day of working alone in her fields. She works herself to the bone, trying to maintain the small unit of land. Before she knows it, it’s time for her to take the long walk back into the city to collect her children. In the evening, she sits on the grass mat outside and watches the sunset with shades of orange, pink, and yellow scattering the sky. She sits there and wonders when her beloved husband will return home from his long trip in search of work in the mines.

A young, well-kept woman sits in a bathtub awaiting the arrival of her cocktail. She drinks it slowly, trying to rest after a long day at work. She gets out and gets dressed in her silk nightgown. She walks down the marble staircase, making sure she stops by the kitchen to grab a snack. She walks into her spacious living room and switches on the stereo. While sitting at her bar, she pulls out a cigarette and holds it gently between her long fingers with the bright red nails.

A boy sits in a pipe with many other homeless people. The cold front is coming in, and there is no warmer place to go. He wonders where he will get food to survive and if he will wake up the next morning alive. He is scared he might freeze to death.

I sit in my room, grateful for what I have. I wonder where I’d be if I didn’t have a loving family, a warm home, food in my stomach, and an education. There are many people in our land who are unhappy, but there are people out there who are doing their best to make our country a better place, and to make our people as happy as they can be.

*Smarties: small, colorful candies similar to M&Ms in appearance
*Stoke: keeping the fire going

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