Today we mourn the passing of a Legend.
At five years old I was too young to understand what Nelson Mandela’s fight to emancipate South Africa from the apartheid regime that enshrined the racist ideology already in existence and institutionalised white supremacy, meant for my generation. But as I got older, my parents, who lived through this period, told us the stories. I was fourteen when he became the first Black, democratically elected President of South Africa and I will never forget the images and feelings that accompany those years. Its hard to think of Africa without thinking of Nelson Mandela- a Man of great spirit, a Man who re-defined humanity.
His prison cell is a bedrock of history. His prison number 64446 stands to define the greatest moment in time.
Nelson Mandela was not a man with super powers but his faith and power of conviction made him super human. He was a man who believed in the tenets of freedom and in equality and justice for all. He suffered years of hard labour in prison, Robben Island, for continuing to believe and demand that freedom. I doubt we will ever have anyone like Mr Mandela walk the face of this earth again, for he was a man that stood apart from the rest. His is the perfect legacy. His life stands as the greatest lesson for humanity.
And will continue to do so for all ages.
Nelson Mandela, a man with the warm smile and a big heart. A man who put the good of a nation above and beyond his own. A man who endured untold sacrifices for the freedom of my generation and several generations to come.
A man who defined courage in the face of adversity.
He was and always will be the greatest man who ever lived and the world is a bleaker place without Him.
Madiba.
Today we mourn the passing of a Legend.
May His Soul Rest In Perfect Peace.