The Last Trek: A New Beginning

This month I read a book by F.W. DeKlerk, the last Afrikaner president of South Africa. We was succeeded by Nelson Mandela in 1994.

I thought I was world-aware, but have never, never heard about the Afrikaner side of the Apartheid business. Apartheid (and it's adherents) was always this screwy, slimy devil.

Did you know that the Afrikaners were religious refugees from Europe who--like Anabaptists--sought freedom to live without being slaughtered in the "new world" of their time. Many of them were French Huguenots, who had first gone to Holland, and finally moved to South Africa. They were tough and diligent. These guys were farmers, not aristocrats (like the British who settled in parts of Kenya and the southern United States.)

In 1904, they lost the Boer War against the British, which had been particularly gruesome.
After being harassed and slaughtered, they were particular about having a homeland of their own, similar to Jews wanting a geographical nation. And so, in 1984 when an Afrikaner won the South African election, he set to establishing a system that would safe guard the right to self-determination of his ethnic nation. "Apartheid" means separateness.

Apartheid wasn't so much focused on African subjugation as it was on Afrikaner self-determination. The Boers developed excellent school systems, vineyards, good farms, an economy for themselves. And it was successful.

The Africans didn't have systems that systematically promoted their ethnic nations. It seems that the desparity just got too great between the Boers' wealth and the African's lifestyles.

After 40 years of Apartheid, there was too much unrest in South Africa, and it seemed they were headed for a Boer-African civil war. F. W. De Klerk was elected president 1990, and immediately began to dismantle Apartheid. For an African to dismantle Apartheid would have seemed natural. But for a pure Boer to take on the task, I think, makes him extraordinary.

He re-wrote the constitution, set up a fair election system, and let himself be defeated by Mandela. The election was clearly rigged and manipulated, but in the immediate aftermath, even while some of this peer were demanding a re-vote, he voluntarily delivered a Concession speech.

Many of the Africans were astonished when he actually stepped down. They had expected hanky-panky. Instead, De Klerk passed the presidency peacefully to his opponent, and continued working under the new government for some time.

I couldn't read the last chapter because our dog ate it. But that was the gist of the book.

The Music of Silence

Another lovely book:

The Music of Silence, by David Steindle-Rast

The author, a monk, illuminates the path for we non-monk-ies, to gain insights and spiritual refreshment from the monastic practice of praying the “hours.” He explains the purpose behind the “hours,” a pause for prayer, which are observed through the course of the day.

I have posted this on my kitchen door, to help me remember. Louise used to have a koo-koo clock, and I remember her too appreciating the awareness of time's passing, and being reminded to pause for prayer.

Vigils, before sunrise. A time for silence, for mystery, wind, awareness of my weakness sand vulnerability; reflection. It is the inhale for the coming day.

Lauds, dawn. Receive the new day as a gift. Meditate on gratitude and generosity. What opportunities might come today for me to swoosh my largesse of spirit toward someone?

Prime. A deliberate beginning. A time for practicalities; we chose the day’s tasks and areas of focus. At this time, we take hold of our day instead of letting it run off with us.

Terce, midmorning. Coffee break, an upbeat celebration. A chance to appreciate our aliveness, and the primal energy that fuels the universe. Bask.

Sext, noon. Fervor and commitment. Energy wanes as we pass from morning into afternoon. Here were renew our commitment to the day’s focus. We deal with entropic drain. Traditionally a time to pause and pray for peace. We celebrate the meal time.

None, late afternoon. The day begins to evade our grasp, like all things. This enactment of life’s fading helps us to delight in today, even as it beckons our focus toward eternity. Face my aloneness. The more fully we live, the more fully we can let go. We appreciate the limits and boundaries that give life structure and meaning. We return from work, back to our home and center.

Vespers, sunset. Invites us to peace of heart. Neighborliness, festiveness. We invite God in for the evening. “We luxuriate in the quiet beauty of the evening.” Serenity.

Compline, before bed. The conclusion, the close. Examine the consciousness; forgive. Awareness that the cosmos was created for us, and we are at home here. Return to silence. Pray for nourishing and teaching dreams.