I got stuck on your describing the piece "poignant." I didn't really find it sad so much as feeling that yeah life is tough. Oh but maybe that's what poignant means.
I read today a wrap-up post by Christian Science Monitor reporter Scott Baldauf leaving his Africa post after 5 years Five Myths About Africa.
The first myth he tackles is, "Africa is poor." What's strange is he uses an anecdote that seems to show it's not a myth at all. But concludes:
"The word ubuntu has been so often used by politicians that it is fast losing its credit, but as long as the impulse remains, South Africans will have a foundation stone for building a new, more equitable South Africa."
It's a shift to think of something so difficult to define as "ubuntu" or Tozier's "community" as a foundation stone. But it's truly sad if we cannot get our heads into that space.
I got stuck on your describing the piece "poignant." I didn't really find it sad so much as feeling that yeah life is tough. Oh but maybe that's what poignant means.
ReplyDeleteI read today a wrap-up post by Christian Science Monitor reporter Scott Baldauf leaving his Africa post after 5 years Five Myths About Africa.
The first myth he tackles is, "Africa is poor." What's strange is he uses an anecdote that seems to show it's not a myth at all. But concludes:
"The word ubuntu has been so often used by politicians that it is fast losing its credit, but as long as the impulse remains, South Africans will have a foundation stone for building a new, more equitable South Africa."
It's a shift to think of something so difficult to define as "ubuntu" or Tozier's "community" as a foundation stone. But it's truly sad if we cannot get our heads into that space.