Greetings, friends (or Sawubona, abangane, as we say in Zulu). Here I am a half a world away from relatives and old friends, from familiar places, from situations in which I am reasonably secure and comfortable, and from most of the comforts to which I had grown accustomed. I’m working with and for people of a vastly different culture, mostly the poor, the dying, and those suffering from HIV/AIDS, and in less than ideal circumstances, - - - and yet somehow I’m happy from morning to bedtime; I’m living in a quiet kind of joy each day the whole day long. This realization prompted the idea of finding out what made South Africans happy.
So, I asked ten people (white, black, mixed, relatively rich, dirt poor, highly educated, poorly educated, professional workers, menial workers, young, old) the following question, “What makes you happy; what gives you joy?” Here are their answers. (shortened, but containing the essence)
1) Sitting and talking with people.
2) Having a job that I like doing, and being able to do it well.
3) Being around people that I like and that care for me.
4) Waking up alive each day feeling good (healthy).
5) Serving other people; having a job that allows me to serve them.
6) Having my family (children & grandchildren) close.
7) Being close to God.
8) Having everything I need. (?) You know, food, cosmetics, money
to do whatever I want, and friends.
9) Having time to do what I want instead of always working because
I have to.
10) When we get together for celebrations, with food, and music, and
story-telling and talking.
There’s nothing very profound here. Would people in the U.S. have similar answers? How would you answer? To me, these answers under-score our basic humanity; that despite our differences, our commonalities as human beings far outweigh those differences. Our cultural, religious, political, economic, racial, occupational, generational, and individual differences merely add spice and variety to the beings we call the children of God. We truly are all brothers and sisters. Sala kahle. (Zulu: remain well)
