A Man's Got To Have a Code (Poem)

𝗔 𝗺𝗮𝗻’𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗱𝗲

(𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙥 𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧-𝙗𝙖𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚)

𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚗𝚎𝚛𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚠𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛

𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐!

𝚆𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚍𝚘 𝙸 𝚋𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚗

𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚋𝚎 𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐?

𝚆𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚍𝚘 𝙸 𝚋𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚗

𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚖𝚢 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐?

𝙼𝚛 𝚖𝚊𝚗, 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚎𝚍

𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚖𝚢 𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔,

𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝'𝚜 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚙𝚞𝚝

𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚕𝚍 𝚔𝚗𝚒𝚏𝚎!

𝙽𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐’𝚜 𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛

𝚊𝚜 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔

- 𝚊 𝚖𝚊𝚗'𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚍𝚎!

𝚄𝚗𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞, 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚍𝚎

𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚛𝚞𝚎 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎,

𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚊𝚠 𝚊𝚗 𝚞𝚗𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚐𝚒𝚏𝚝,

𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚛𝚒𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚝 𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝

𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚋𝚞𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜

- 𝚊 𝚖𝚊𝚗'𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚍𝚎!

𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚘𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚋𝚛𝚘𝚔𝚎 𝚖𝚎,

𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚜𝚕𝚒𝚙 𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚝𝚞𝚖𝚋𝚕𝚎

𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝’𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚎!

𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚋𝚛𝚞𝚒𝚜𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚍,

𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞!

𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚟𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚜

𝚍𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚘𝚠𝚗

- 𝚊 𝚖𝚊𝚗'𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚍𝚎!

© 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟬 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝘄𝘆𝗻 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄

Gedig vir Ma

𝗴𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗴 𝘃𝗶𝗿 𝗠𝗮

𝙼𝚊, 𝚍𝚒𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚟𝚊𝚗 𝚓𝚘𝚞 𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚍

𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚢 𝚔𝚕𝚊𝚊𝚜𝚟𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚎

𝚝𝚘𝚎 𝚎𝚔 𝚗𝚒𝚎 𝚔𝚘𝚗 𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚊𝚙 𝚗𝚒𝚎

𝚎𝚗 𝚓𝚘𝚞 𝚘ë 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚔𝚛𝚒𝚔𝚟𝚘ë𝚕𝚜

𝚝𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚊𝚕 𝚖𝚢 𝚗𝚊𝚐𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜

𝙼𝚊, 𝚠𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚝 𝚓𝚢 𝙷𝚘𝚖 𝚐𝚎𝚟𝚛𝚊

𝚠𝚊𝚝 𝚖𝚢 𝚟𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚊𝚐 𝚗𝚘𝚐 𝚍𝚛𝚊?

𝙼𝚊, 𝚎𝚔 𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚝 𝚓𝚢 𝚖𝚊𝚊𝚔 𝚐𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚍

𝚟𝚒𝚛 ‘𝚗 𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚍𝚞𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐

𝚎𝚗 𝚎𝚔 𝚟𝚒𝚛 ‘𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚜𝚋𝚕𝚊𝚊𝚛 𝚜𝚎 𝚟𝚊𝚕

𝙼𝚊, 𝚠𝚊𝚝 𝚖𝚘𝚎𝚝 𝚎𝚔 𝙷𝚘𝚖 𝚟𝚛𝚊

𝚘𝚖 𝚓𝚘𝚞 ‘𝚗 𝚙𝚊𝚊𝚛 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚝𝚎 𝚜𝚙𝚊𝚊𝚛?

𝙼𝚊, 𝚖𝚊𝚐 𝚖𝚢 𝚐𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚐

𝚓𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚘𝚞 𝚋𝚢 𝚖𝚢

𝚟𝚒𝚛 𝚎𝚠𝚒𝚐

© 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝘄𝘆𝗻 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄

My Lockdown Journal - 14 July 2020

Most of us get frustrated when life gets in the way. Nothing wrong with that, it's just that we all want to do the simplest things in life, but are blocked by people, a lack of resources, or by situations beyond our control. Maybe you have also encountered that when you set your goals on something, it almost always get blocked on some level. It is, therefore, no surprise that the Bible tells us in so many ways that the bigger our goals are, the bigger our opposition will be. Scripture tells us to press on, and that our best is yet to come.

What I have learned was that if you dearly want something, there is still a way to get what you want; it is called purpose and passion. When I was in grade nine (1983), our career guidance teacher asked us to share what careers we wanted to pursue. Everyone was excited and shared dreams of becoming a doctor, teacher, entrepreneur, etc. When it was my turn, I shared my dream of becoming a writer, the teacher laughed, followed by the rest of the class. I was shocked that a teacher would react like that. My teacher reminded me that we were living in apartheid, South Africa. He said Coloureds don’t become writers because the doors to publishing are shut for people of colour. He said I would make a good clerk or teacher. I felt a strange burning sensation on the inside. It wasn't pain or cramps, but a passion to become a published writer. At that moment I knew that nothing and nobody was going to assassinate my dream. 

Walking home that day, I told myself that just because I’ve experienced resistance didn’t mean I had to give up. I knew I had something in me that was worth pursuing. Somehow I knew that the colour of my skin couldn’t keep me from reaching my dreams and aspirations. I think one of the best things about being a kid, is that there is no dream that’s too big. The journey thereafter wasn’t moonlight and roses; it was hard work. Today I am a published writer and freelance journalist. One of my stories about the #FeesMustFall protests was featured on CNN.

I am sure that many dreams are being realised during this lockdown period. For a writer or creative person, the free time as a result of COVID-19 is a gift on a platter. 

Mister Taxi Driver (Poetry)

mister taxi driver

taxi driver, djy’s ’n gateway na hel ou pêl

hoe haatsee is ittie om te sien

djy issie gepla oo ôse lewens’ie

ôse harte kadoef-kadoef oppie beat

van djou aansteeklike rhythm

wat speed straps lielik duck en dive

skielik hoo ‘n man skreeuende tyres

en ‘n groot slag en tientalle opslag

dood toe die emergency ouens appear

taxi driver, ek sêrit soesit is

djy gaan nog ôs ammel uit wipe

wan djy’s ‘n brug tussen lewe en dood

en als net vi djou ennie taxi laanie se daily brood

© 2020 Selwyn Milborrow

NB: Image is subject to copyright

Lockdown Journal - Day 31

My Lockdown Journal 2020 – Sunday, Day 31:

Time is a universal given. It is the context within which we all must live and work. No one is given more time than another, and no one is given less. Before the lockdown, I was used to partitioning my time in order to strike a balance between work, studies and hobbies.

The lockdown has made things ridiculously easy. No more rationing; suddenly, I had enough time on my hands. I even had enough time to write this 31-day journal. It is also my last journal entry.

I’m going to compile my thirty-one days’ entries and write a book about my experiences in lockdown. Not only will it account for my time spent in isolation but also the level of my productivity during the lockdown.

To say the COVID-19 pandemic has uprooted our lives is an understatement. One can barely fall asleep because our patterns are all over the place. We’re concerned about the economy, our work, our children, family, the future... Call it uncertainty and fear. The only thing that can make us sleep well is trust. Proverbs 3:24 says, “When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.” I am sure we can’t wait for that time to come.

Let us take heart in the fact that according to 2 Chronicles 16:9, "For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.”

During the lockdown, many women, men and children are stuck at home with their abusers. The number of cases reported since the beginning of the lockdown is scary. The right thing to do is to help someone who needs our help. Call the Stop Gender-Based Violence Helpline on 0800 150 150.

#SocialDistancing
#LockdownJournal
#LockdownSouthAfrica
#COVID19

Lockdown Journal - Day 18

My Lockdown Journal 2020 – Monday, Day 18:

I can think of a few people who taught me an important principle when I was still in my youth. They all said the same thing, “React only to facts. Don’t respond to assumptions and emotions.” This is a valuable principle when it comes to relationships and life in general.

Social media is probably the single most dangerous communication tool currently in use. Many smart people have fallen for dangerous lies about the new coronavirus. At worst, the ideas themselves are harmful because people have died from drinking chemicals in the belief that it will cure them. During this trying time, I advise anyone to stick to the facts. Make sure the information (mostly gossip or fake news) is correct by verifying it. This will stop you from overreacting and spreading the news further and farther into the world. Remember that technology has turned this world into one global village. Fake news can be spread faster than the coronavirus.

Keep seeking the truth no matter what your circumstances. Stick to your faith; remain immovable and unshakable. God constantly declares that He wants only what is best for us. I love the truth proclaimed in Jeremiah 29:11-13, For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

#LockdownJournal
#COVID19SouthAfrica
#LockdownSA

LOCKDOWN JOURNAL - DAY 11

My Lockdown Journal 2020 – Monday, Day 11:

Today is day 11 of #LockdownSA2020. Every day feels like a carbon copy of the one before. I’m living out my own ‘Groundhog Day’. It gets more difficult by the day to keep myself productive, focused, and creative. How much longer do we have to live like this? The experts are not sure. It’s not the most satisfying answer, but we must remain resilient.

We live in a strange time; the world has never been so clean in terms of mass personal hygiene. Unnecessary contact with external objects or other people has become an unofficial law. For every problem, there’s a solution, but that solution, unfortunately, brings another problem. The social distancing rule is an example thereof. It is aimed at flattening the curve and stopping the coronavirus in its tracks, but people are still out gallivanting and ignoring the lockdown regulations. It’s a global problem; the UK police had to chase people from parks and beaches while the same is happening in France, the US and African countries.

The message to stay home in order to save lives is obviously not getting through. A bride and groom, including their wedding guests, and pastor were arrested over the weekend in KwaZulu-Natal. The one moment it was ‘bride and groom’ and it quickly turned into ‘doom and gloom’.
The coronavirus has left nothing untouched in its wake. For all its peril, it has helped bring people together. Families are connecting more frequently as seen from video clips on social media platforms. There are a lot of unanswered questions coming from our children and loved ones, but one thing I know for sure is that everything will be okay.

During lockdown fear and despair have been nipping at our heels. It made some people turn to religion; others to conspiracy theories, or tackling new hobbies. During the lockdown period, there will be moments that we feel anxiety threatening to overwhelm us. At that moment, I always feel encouraged by the Bible scripture in Psalm 35:15 (NIV) that says, “My times are in your hands; deliver me from the hands of my enemies, from those who pursue me.” Let’s stay focused and allow ourselves the time to rest well and use the opportunity to do some introspection (stock-taking).

#LockdownJournal
#COVID19SouthAfrica
#21DayLockdownSA