Let me start with a bit of context: I'm not a dad, but I have a dad and I'm an uncle to four nieces, a nephew and a bunch of my friends kids. I'm also the godfather to three girls, two of which are my nieces. I regularly have the privilege of getting to babysit (look after) my niblings (the collective term for nieces and nephews) and I know that that doesn't make me a [...]
To be a Dad I’m heading towards 50, a father to a 19yo son Dylan, and an 18yo daughter Brynn. I lost my dad this year and I miss him terribly. I seem to have done a fairly good job of fathering my kids if other people’s unsolicited comments are anything to go by. There are a good few things I regret not having done, but very few I regret doing. Here are some of [...]
Every morning for the past 8 months I have woken up and at least one thing is the same as the day before and as the day to follow... I am a dad. My wife and I received the incredible blessing of our little girl, Cori Rose Benn, at around 13:00 on Wednesday 26 February 2014. Something I have always wanted to be is a dad. Since almost as long as I can remember I [...]
i won't lie, writing about Race in South Africa can feel a little daunting. Especially when you have been out of the country for three years - one of the things i didn't want to do was come charging in with all the answers and so i chose instead to use my little platform to create a space and invite some people to share their thoughts. There have been a whole bunch of conversations about [...]
The Bible says, 'The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.' i have noticed, however, that for most people, talking about money seems to be the evilest of evil. Or close to. Why is it that people do not like to talk about money? As if it is this hallowed 'That-Which-shall-Not-Be-Named' mystical creature upon whose mentioning chaos and damnation occurs? You don't believe me? Try asking someone sitting with a group of [...]
i have loved the conversations happening on my blog with regards to matters of Race recently. A lot of the posts are specific to South Africa, but i imagine there are themes, ideas and principles that will translate to other contexts around the world and it will be good to get some outside voices as it were to comment as well. What has been particularly exciting to see has been the spirit of engagement that has taken [...]
i have loved the conversation going on in the comments section of the blog piece Nkosi wrote for me on First Steps White South Africans can make towards a really new South Africa. My friend Lex passed on a response from her friend, Sindile, which i thought would be good to use as a standalone post as i'm sure it will also generate some good conversation. So we would love to hear from you and please [...]
So in these two most recent Pearls before Swine cartoons, we get a great glimpse of the character of the two main, um, characters, namely Rat and Pig. Rat being the cynical, mean, vindictive one, i find that i identify with him way too often, and when i notice that i do, i usually have to do some kind of changing of my ways... although sometimes i wish i was this forward: Whereas Pig on [...]
Continuing some really helpful conversations surrounding White Privilege and Racial Reconciliation, i was put into contact with Stephanie Ebert who has been doing some master's research on a related topic. “I’m a target of crime. I have to leave the country in order to find work. I do not have leaders in government who are my race. When I’m stopped by a cop, they most likely do not look like me. I’m not privileged, I’m [...]
i don't know Stephan Pastis personally [although i did meet him once and introduce him to No_bob, the world's most famous dolphin and if we keep on harrassing him he will surely HAVE to include No_bob in a strip] but it is quite possible he is stalking me. As is evidenced in these two strips i just saw on the best and worst of foods. It's like he 'gets' me. THE BEST: THE WORSTish: Well, [...]