Item
A beautiful people
Title (Dublin Core)
A beautiful people
Description (Dublin Core)
So I am no story teller...I just wish to document an experience...
Masiphumelele, affectionately known as Masi, is a township of an estimated 40 000 people in the South Peninsula of Cape Town, South Africa. If you know our townships, you'll know many of the residents live way below the poverty line at the best of times... hugely exacerbated by something like COVID-19 lockdown.
So a huge initiative is feeding the people. And it is in this context that I experienced the absolute beauty of our people...
Private individuals from all walks of life...many more affluent than their Masi neighbors...but not necessarily so... freely and generously giving of their time... money... energy... love...to come alongside Masi and deliver food parcels.
Perhaps even more beautiful was the spirit of the Masi people. So welcoming... genuinely...not just because they may receive a food parcel. Children running alongside the vehicles, smiling, wanting to talk to the 'visitors' (not fully understanding social distancing 🤗). Residents going out of their way to help the donors find the intended recipients... they themselves not having much... but being sssssooo happy for a neighbor who might receive a parcel... even when they didn't and could well have done with one... the absolute gratitude and sadly the relief on the faces of those who did receive... just a basic parcel...but it meant meals for 2 weeks.
And the heartbreak for the volunteers delivering the parcels... knowing that for every one who received, 100s more needed but wouldn't get... but not letting that sadness stop them... rather swallowing their own pain and carrying on with the work... knowing that at least a difference was made for a few people...like the story of the starfish.
We often look at what COVID-19 has taken from us, and there is much lost. It has also given us so much...a glimpse into the beautiful souls of so many beautiful people...a privilege
Masiphumelele, affectionately known as Masi, is a township of an estimated 40 000 people in the South Peninsula of Cape Town, South Africa. If you know our townships, you'll know many of the residents live way below the poverty line at the best of times... hugely exacerbated by something like COVID-19 lockdown.
So a huge initiative is feeding the people. And it is in this context that I experienced the absolute beauty of our people...
Private individuals from all walks of life...many more affluent than their Masi neighbors...but not necessarily so... freely and generously giving of their time... money... energy... love...to come alongside Masi and deliver food parcels.
Perhaps even more beautiful was the spirit of the Masi people. So welcoming... genuinely...not just because they may receive a food parcel. Children running alongside the vehicles, smiling, wanting to talk to the 'visitors' (not fully understanding social distancing 🤗). Residents going out of their way to help the donors find the intended recipients... they themselves not having much... but being sssssooo happy for a neighbor who might receive a parcel... even when they didn't and could well have done with one... the absolute gratitude and sadly the relief on the faces of those who did receive... just a basic parcel...but it meant meals for 2 weeks.
And the heartbreak for the volunteers delivering the parcels... knowing that for every one who received, 100s more needed but wouldn't get... but not letting that sadness stop them... rather swallowing their own pain and carrying on with the work... knowing that at least a difference was made for a few people...like the story of the starfish.
We often look at what COVID-19 has taken from us, and there is much lost. It has also given us so much...a glimpse into the beautiful souls of so many beautiful people...a privilege
Date (Dublin Core)
May 4, 2020
Controlled Vocabulary (Dublin Core)
English
Community & Community Organizations
English
Community Service
English
Public Space
English
Biography
Curator's Tags (Omeka Classic)
Cape Town
South Africa
South Peninsula
poverty
gap
Masiphumelele
volunteer
food
Curatorial Notes (Dublin Core)
Changed date to correct formatting. 5/6 LM
Date Submitted (Dublin Core)
05/04/2020
Date Modified (Dublin Core)
05/06/2020
11/25/2020
Date Created (Dublin Core)
05/04/2020
Text (Omeka Classic)
So I am no story teller...I just wish to document an experience...
Masiphumelele, affectionately known as Masi, is a township of an estimated 40 000 people in the South Peninsula of Cape Town, South Africa. If you know our townships, you'll know many of the residents live way below the poverty line at the best of times... hugely exacerbated by something like COVID-19 lockdown.
So a huge initiative is feeding the people. And it is in this context that I experienced the absolute beauty of our people...
Private individuals from all walks of life...many more affluent than their Masi neighbors...but not necessarily so... freely and generously giving of their time... money... energy... love...to come alongside Masi and deliver food parcels.
Perhaps even more beautiful was the spirit of the Masi people. So welcoming... genuinely...not just because they may receive a food parcel. Children running alongside the vehicles, smiling, wanting to talk to the 'visitors' (not fully understanding social distancing 🤗). Residents going out of their way to help the donors find the intended recipients... they themselves not having much... but being sssssooo happy for a neighbor who might receive a parcel... even when they didn't and could well have done with one... the absolute gratitude and sadly the relief on the faces of those who did receive... just a basic parcel...but it meant meals for 2 weeks.
And the heartbreak for the volunteers delivering the parcels... knowing that for every one who received, 100s more needed but wouldn't get... but not letting that sadness stop them... rather swallowing their own pain and carrying on with the work... knowing that at least a difference was made for a few people...like the story of the starfish.
We often look at what COVID-19 has taken from us, and there is much lost. It has also given us so much...a glimpse into the beautiful souls of so many beautiful people...a privilege
Masiphumelele, affectionately known as Masi, is a township of an estimated 40 000 people in the South Peninsula of Cape Town, South Africa. If you know our townships, you'll know many of the residents live way below the poverty line at the best of times... hugely exacerbated by something like COVID-19 lockdown.
So a huge initiative is feeding the people. And it is in this context that I experienced the absolute beauty of our people...
Private individuals from all walks of life...many more affluent than their Masi neighbors...but not necessarily so... freely and generously giving of their time... money... energy... love...to come alongside Masi and deliver food parcels.
Perhaps even more beautiful was the spirit of the Masi people. So welcoming... genuinely...not just because they may receive a food parcel. Children running alongside the vehicles, smiling, wanting to talk to the 'visitors' (not fully understanding social distancing 🤗). Residents going out of their way to help the donors find the intended recipients... they themselves not having much... but being sssssooo happy for a neighbor who might receive a parcel... even when they didn't and could well have done with one... the absolute gratitude and sadly the relief on the faces of those who did receive... just a basic parcel...but it meant meals for 2 weeks.
And the heartbreak for the volunteers delivering the parcels... knowing that for every one who received, 100s more needed but wouldn't get... but not letting that sadness stop them... rather swallowing their own pain and carrying on with the work... knowing that at least a difference was made for a few people...like the story of the starfish.
We often look at what COVID-19 has taken from us, and there is much lost. It has also given us so much...a glimpse into the beautiful souls of so many beautiful people...a privilege
Accrual Method (Dublin Core)
3345