Seth Naicker, a new friend of mine posted this at his site:
“The 16th of December 2008, marks our South African Day of Reconciliation in our 14th year of democracy. President Nelson Mandela in his speech in 1995 stated:
‘There are few countries which dedicate a national public holiday to reconciliation. But then there are few nations with our history of enforced division, oppression and sustained conflict. And fewer still, which have undergone such a remarkable transition to reclaim their humanity. We, the people of South Africa, have made a decisive and irreversible break with the past. We have, in real life, declared our shared allegiance to justice, non-racialism and democracy; our yearning for a peaceful and harmonious nation of equals.'”
What a beautiful sentiment and remarkable challenge to all of us.
Ironically, yesterday was also “National Chocolate Covered Anything Day.” In many ways, reconciliation requires a new version of an old relationship. A strawberry is good, but a chocolate-covered strawberry is even better. 🙂
