I like you

I don’t like you
Because
You are White
I like you for
Celebrating kindness
A loving nature
Free spirited
True believer
Enabling liberator
Soul protector
Living
Vector

I don’t like you
Because
You are of mixed descent or so-called coloured
I like you for
Sharing loyalty
Unrelenting tenacity
Support never-ending
Challenger unbending
Soul mirror
Opinionated
Reverberator

I don’t like you
Because
You are black
I like you for
Positive energy
Challenging my thinking
Questioning instincts
Collectivist tinkering
Bouncing negativity
Capturing true inner voices
Respectfully

I don’t like you
Because
You are Asian
I like you for
Love radiating
Mind challenges concentrating
Laughter celebrating
Earth principles protecting
‘Being the change’
Philosophically pulsating
Living
Congruently

Under Apartheid racial classification casted South Africans into these four categories or racial groupings, White, So-called Coloured, Black and Asian. for me there is the HUMAN RACE and I was lucky to learn very early in life that the statute books and society does not have to decide how I like or dislike people. Being rude, lazy or disrespectful are some of the things that can motivate liking or disliking. The piece was inspired by a discussion with a true friend and mentor in the context of moving on from the mental trappings of racist societies. This one is for Dawn, Patricia, Khanysani, Meghan and Siyamthanda. A celebration of all the BORN FREE’s -- you don’t have to nurture the ideological trappings of society. I love you. Quoting Mahatma Ghandi 'Being the change you want to see'.

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-25.

Insignificance Accepted

If we had to live our lives
The size of a postage stamp
Will there be
An expectation to achieve less
Will we feel
More blessed with fewer possessions
Bitter life lessons

If we had to live our lives
Like a slice of bread
Will there be
Enough to quench an immediate hunger
Will we feel
Satisfied with it dry
Or continuously of hunger cry

If we had to live our lives
With one change of clothes
Will there be
An expectation to keep it clean
Will we feel
Well attired
At every occasion high powered

If we had to live our lives
In the shoes of another soul free
Will there be
An expectation to do all the sad jobs
Will we feel
We have achieved
Earning but a pittance for good deeds

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-24

Motherhood

I wish we could have the gift
Of special complete recall
Every laugh
Bright remark
Silly game we played
Overriding all the conflicting times
Growing children
The best to celebrate
In moments and memories exceptional
Our lives
A special bond
Sheltered

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-23

Be proud

Be proud
Beautiful daughter
Talent nurtured
Outspoken
More lessons to learn
New ideas explored
Life waiting
Taking care
Development holistic
Dreams realistic
Choosing paths
Less fatalistic
Coming-of-age
Just a small step
A critical stage
Obliterating rage
Nurturing self-worth
Every day’s worth living

For Dawn, Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 20111-08-23.

Sisters Knitting

At around five
My big sister decided
I needed to learn how to read
Crochet and knitting
Became part of the deal
Over the years
A love of books grew
Little needles hooked
Caps green and gold
Primary school of old
Jumble jerseys in the mix
Endless pairs of fuzzy sox
Provided well needed therapy
An escape from going crazy
Paying forward free

Now around forty-five
My baby-sister
Plays with me
In virtual reality
We have a knitting bee
Surfing patterns on the net
Casting on and off
Ripping up small mistakes
This humble endowment
Keeps on giving
Charity bin needles pointy
Cotton tangles can any project
To useless items wrangle
Creative creations
A collective dare
Valued
This gift from sister Care

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-22

Small Mercies

Crispy cucumbers
Fresh tomatoes
Spinach
Picked in the rain
Apples
Sour-sweet
Fragrant herbs
Late blooms
Summer’s gifts
Cherished

Welcome rainstorms
Seed banks fed
Squirrels
Collecting every morsel
They can get
The pond to a birdbath transformed
A season’s end
Quietly savoured

Sunlight dances through thunderclouds
Bright stars hiding in the dark
Daylight valued more than gold
Change lines
Swollen hands
Minor reminders
Happiness captured
More than passing fazes
Tumbling in the grass
Skipping in the dust
Memories of the fun that once was
Constantly celebrated

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-21

Full circle

Three seconds
Three minutes
Three months
All she had
A precious gift
To her family
Taken away
Before
She could grow old
A perfect impression
Will last forever
I never knew her name
My sympathy
With her mother remains

Twenty-one seconds
Twenty and one minutes
Twenty-one months
Almost
Twenty-one years
We shared his existence
A precious gift
To a wide family
Taken away
Before
Maturing wisdom teeth
Growing old bones
Bright impressions
Will last forever
I never knew his final dreams
My sympathy
With the family remains

Full circle
Lives long and short
Gravestone
Evidence
Quite ironic
Believers or not
Lifecycles
Travelled
Alone
In crowds
Empty Hospital corridors
Dawn beach walks
Behind cascading mountain waterfalls
Inside
Burgeoning wild summer bulbs
Orchids tender
We all someday have to
Surrender

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-20. For Lynn Jardine and her family in the memory of her late baby daughter who died and three months and the Family Noemdoe in the memory of Augustine Noemdoe who lived until one hour before his 21st birthday.

Strength

We count our strength
In numbers
Standing up
Collectively
Overcoming
Grief
Pain
Connected
In family
No shame

We count our wealth
In silver coins
Saved
Nest eggs
Secret buffers
Against suffering
In numbers collated
Life loss
Can never be
Compensated

We count our hurting
In sad events
Bad choices
Lonely
Repentant
Forgiveness
A gift
Resplendent
Score
Not nurtured by numbness
Solidarity offers
Communal strength
Incumbent

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-19

Lingering Ideas

I have to dig
Deep inside
Sound inspiration
Ideas new find
Stuck
A mind
Like a memory chest
Language percolated
Knitting and sewing
Projects pre-occupied
Wordsmithing
Pushed
To the days’ edge

Pushed
To life’s edge
Breathing
Drawn to the play-box
Collecting memories
In a treasure chest
Day to day
We seldom
Have time to reflect
Occasionally
Our minds come to rest
Survival
Greater than an idea kind

Survival
Embracing every day
Life’s gift
Calls me out to play
Sunshine bright
During thunderstorm rain
Spring, Summer, Autumn
In one day
Dark clouds
Fail to linger
Often
Praise songs
Washes away
Lingering heartaches
Mourning pain

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-18

Change

Clean washing on the line
A kitchen sink washed and shined
Chicken curry remnants
Promises a delicious leftover lunch
Another day
Closer to the end of summer
Spring promised
In another place
The start of a friend’s New Year
Living in a shared universe

A full moon waning
Twin foxes on the hunt
Everyday changes
Reality confronted
Night and day
Space to grow and play
A paraphrased Bible
In the charity shop for sale
Create room for reflection, prayer
More than a chore or dare

Somewhere
Everywhere
Transformations occur
Living and dying
Integral to a natural chain of events
Sadness
Joy
Pain
Hope
All visit in little waves
Moving tides
Happens
Again and again

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-17

Opportunity

We are always
Looking
For the best
Opportunities
Decisions made
By someone else
Impacts
Life
Seldom
Neat and compact

We are always
Dealing
With reality
Opportunities
Grabbed when seen
Decisions made
On the cusp of the moment
Choices nurtured
In good omens

We are always
Wondering
What the alternative
Opportunities
Could offer
Away from the current situation free
Decisions made
Planned with meaning
Living, dreaming
Every day closer
Idealistically

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-16

Moving Forward

Keeping Up

An active mind
Chases ahead
Idealistic paths mapped
Every so often
In high expectations trapped
More than living in the moment
We cannot do
Everyday
Becomes a lifetime
Soon

Before long
Everyday a lifetime
Accumulated pain
Collected in baskets
Woven with laughter
Chasing the sun in the shadows
Life all about
Ups and downs
With special moments we are crowned

In split seconds
We make memories to keep
Chasing pain
To the scrapheap
New seeds grow
Amongst fallen trees
Watered with tears
The living weep
Progressively from misery
We creep

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-15

Sadness Captured

Fear Foretold

Melancholy pervades
News from home
Uneasy
Acceptance of visions foretelling
A worried heart
Captured fear and dread
Constantly suppressing the urge to fret
Cautiously
These visions close kept
Distance
Could not
Premonitions suppress
Sad, sad, sad news
Calls for renewed
Attention to prayer

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-14

Death Unexpected
The least expected family
Affected
Death
Like a thief in the night
Ripped
A beloved son away
Siblings
With sadness
Remain

The stronger family
Affected
Crushed
The uninvited guest
Himself at home made
Leaving an empty space
Vacant shoes
Unopened books
Suddenly
Settled in a higher place
Meeting our maker
A reality we all face

The well prepared family
Affected
Nothing will ever be the same
August 13th
On the calendar remains
Like memories
Collected in a chain
Bound by blood
Children will always
In the hearts of parents
This status retain

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-14

Ill Prepared

Unqualified
I always want to be
In the task of burying
The daughter
Borne of me

Unqualified
I want to remain
In the skill of feeling no grief
Death close
Should always affect me

Unqualified
I will gladly be
In mourning without tears
Sobs should shatter my soul
Living through this process -- makes me whole

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-14

Hope

Joy
The organist
Conjures
Music composed foreign
A language
Captured
Universal
Craftsmanship
Cherished
Without such beauty
Humanity could perish

Warmth
The congregation
Radiates
Silent communion
Locked in thought
Life in high and low tones
Extort
Our inner likeness
A gift from God
Peace and tranquility
With busy-ness traded
Spirituality
Beyond four walls
Transcended

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-14. Thank you to the Bälinge Kyrka and Gunnar Englund for the Barock Organ concert.

A Sad Refrain

Twenty four hours ago I contemplated the content of this blog -- what to say at the end of a busy day? This and that, nothing concrete or even complete. Easily I slip into a pond of self pity, some intellectual situation replete. Now, almost twenty four hours later… I write with a sad exhortation. Another young one has sung his last refrain. The rest of us will have to cherish his memory as fewer of us will also gradually remain.

The full moon
Looks at me
In patches below
Mist casts a shadow
Like this ache
I can’t explain
One loss
Less meaning
Only immediate
Pain

The full moon
All revealed
Flashbacks
Casts a brightening spell
Others could
Possibly have fallen
One loss
More meaning
Their lives remain

A full moon
Raw emotions borne
A reluctant falling star
Caste a glimmer of hope
How on earth can we cope
An angels’ work never complete
Each night we have to sleep
One loss
Greater meaning
Every waking day calls for a renewed belief

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe for Augustine Noemdoe -- Born 1990-08-13 , Died 2011-08-13. You gave us all of you and we appreciated your love and gentle nature.

Daily Musings

Thinking…

Vibrant red geraniums
Welcomes me
Their fragrance
Gives a sense of place
Home sweet and safe

Bright the light of a falling star
My wish your happiness
Daughter afar
Your life worth more to me
Than the embers of a terrestrial being

Yellow and green leaves compete
Collecting the last of the summer sun free
Soon the darkness will descend
Appreciating the full moon
All the hope it brings

Constant the search within
What gifts to this earth
I bring
Writing lines of words amongst other things
Does what I do define my being?

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-12

Contemplation

Summer’s bounty
Excites me
Apples crisp and fresh
Potatoes multiplied by ten
Another day
Gone again
Closer and closer
Winter creeps
Its arrival
I cannot be told
Exactly when

Winter’s bounty
Rouses me
Snow crisp and white
Icicles crystal clear
A full moon
Capturing midnight fears
Snowball fights
Lingering
Mock cheer
Every moment
It creeps nearer and nearer
Another day fixed
Towards the end of another year

By Simone Beartrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-11

Do not mistake me
Do not mistake me
A writer I’m not
Just an author
Attempting to capture
A light plot
Language
One gift
I accidentally got

Do not mistake me
A gardener I’m not
Just a potato harvester
Attempting to capture
Earth’s bounty
One watering can at a time
Growing cabbages for the slugs
The occasional carrot crunchy
Mud under my fingernails
A clue about whence I hail

Do not mistake me
A cook I’m not
Just a keeper of flavour and tastes
Attempting to capture
Love and meaning
That satisfied feeling
Shared with family and friends
Experimenting
Will never come to an end
Africa and Asia
My special blend
Sweet and sour often
Best companions in the end

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-11

Spirited

Colours captured in perfect craftsmanship
Cathedral stained glass windows
Opens my mind
Arrest my desire to nurture beauty
Daily worship
More love than duty

Love captured in faultless mastery
Souls nurtured in communion
Every angle of the light fosters transformation
Belief systems
Bonds more than nations
Freedom of choice means this will be always be
One of my favourite places



Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2+11-08-10

Simple Abundance

I dare to celebrate
Simple abundance
Enjoying
The value of great care
Distribute more than
Small change to spare
Offer fundamental love to share
Dare to live every breath
Wake up a precious gift
Laying hatchets to rest
Bury pain in a victory chest
Communion
A gift blessed
Sometimes
Money can be
Separated from the rest

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-09

Refuge
A sewing room
Can be my refuge
Cutting squires
Building blocks
Counting rows
Easily
Obliterate mistakes
Patch ideas
Review craft news
Wear things
I created with cheer
Frustrated seems
Torn apart
Bright colours
Capture in my heart

A kitchen
Can be my refuge
Chopping fruit and veg
Baking cakes
Counting minutes
Easily
Obliterate mistakes
New configurations
Stew
Congregate
Guests around a simple feast
Scrub stubborn bottoms
Firing
Herbs and spices
Life more flavoured
Special memories
Savoured

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-09

A Woman’s Pride
I am proud to be a woman
Mother
Partner
Nurturer
Laughing
Living
Crying
Caring

I am proud to be a woman
Leader
Worker
Follower
Agitator
Protester
Defender
Poor pretender

Am proud to be a woman
Soul sister
Conscientious
Unpretentious
Down to earth
Sometimes loud
Occasionally shy
...
Being a man
I will never
Give a try

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-09

Women Celebrated

August 9th is National Women's Day in South Africa. This, National Women's Month, will be marked by many activities to celebrate women. Grandmothers, Mothers, daughters, granddaughters. All celebrated. There will be national events, local activities punctuated with seminars, papers, concerts, tea parties and many more activities. For me, and many more it is a bittersweet celebration. Despite the battles, pain, losses and all the gains, women are vulnerable in their homes and communities. We are still considered as property... slaves and .... At the same time I want to celebrate all our victories! I want to celebrate all the good women who are making major sacrifices to make a difference for all the women following.

Women’s Freedom – Keeping Score
Seventeen
Winters’ of freedom
Celebrated
Another
National Women’s Day
Commemorated
More women in high places
Poverty
Still
Spilling from the usual
Spaces

Seventeen
Spring’s of freedom
Observed
Another
Sixteen Days of Activism
Pending
More women victims in hazardous alleys
Insecurity
Still
Lurking inside supposedly
Safe places

Seventeen
Summer’s of freedom
Anticipated
More girl mothers
Expecting
Fewer fair job opportunities going
Volatility
Still
Courting escalating
Inequality

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-08

Pain
Thousand’s still have to shit in plastic bags
Others sell the bodies for bread and shelter
Our freedom
Was supposed to wipe away the hardship
National Women’s’ Day we have earned
Bread and butter battles less recognized
Our victories by too many unsolved rape cases
Overshadowed
Freedom on paper
Still to be translated to total emancipation

Celebration
I celebrate
National Women’s Day
On behalf of every girl child
All young women
Intelligent
Kind
Caring
Diligent
Every fallen Shero
Your sacrifice
Made me free
Let us Reclaim
Our country
Our legacy!

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-08

Moments

Every moment
We are celebrated
Inhale
Exhale
Each breath
A precious gift
Growing older
Discovering the mysterious
Exploring the familiar
Banking the known
Surety
Never
Guaranteed

We are feted
In small circles
Interrelated
Distracted
Each action
Movement inspiring
Nothing ever insipid
Situations increasingly
Intricate
Even the best intensions
Suffers elements of neglect
Moments of success
Only in time
Expressed

We are alive
Happiness celebrated
Frustrations
Progressively
Obliterated
Commitments
Always
Obligated
Mindfulness
Moments constant
Co-existence
More than a
Social construct
Another day
In the lifecycle

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-07

Poverty at Bay

Poverty
Crushed us all
In small spaces
Now
We live
Continents apart
Comfortable places
Trading
Memories
Family recipes
Silly jokes
Little snippets
Of private gossip
Occasionally
Chattering
Non-stop

Poverty
Taught us all
Resilience
Applied labour
Seldom relying
Only on expected
Brilliance
Humility
A sharp sense of community
Chasing success
Displaying
Modest
Tenacity
Bywoner status
No longer
Our reality

Poverty
Kept us all
Closely connected
Solidarity
A commonality
Mostly
Avoiding
Major calamities
Burying
Losses
Celebrating
Victories
Survival
Less dependent on
Inheritance
False vanity
Rising above
Indigent labels
Casually
Courting
Survivalist's dignity

Bywoner means tenant in Afrikaans.

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-06

Savouring Summer

Slowly
Summer
Fades away
Ants gather
All they can
In my mind
Birds
Congregate and plan
Harvesting
The best on offer
It makes me wonder
If they
Really are
As free
Like they
Seem to me

Fast
I try to capture
All the light
Chase away
Bad dreams
In the dead of night
Toast
My skin golden brown
Smile and laugh
Savouring
Gathered bright delights
Every season older
Anticipating
Winter arriving
Much colder

Gradually
Acceptance
Mother earth
Will me
Protect
Warm soul confident
Autumn
Promising celebration
Confetti leaf-rain
Yellow, red and brown
Cascade
Dark skies
Hybernate
Life slowly wakes
Spring
Wild and merry
Savouring
Next summer’s colour promise
Lovely
Succulent
Deep red berries

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-05

Walled Reluctant Writer

There was a time when washing windows and floors were part of my weekly chore routine. Crying, figthing, feigning illness, all my best tricks to get out of these tasks never worked. It only took longer to get it done! Today, I washed the windows and the floors, it had to be done, but it became a selective chore over writing. Once again, close to midnight and I have to come with something original. Since my brain seems to still appreciate the summer break, I offer more pictures for light relief.

Stone Wall Fascination
Graveyard walls
Gather moss
Soul's at rest
Winter's surviving
Summer's thriving
Keeping
Mourners in
Grave-robbers out
Tended
Over decades
It will outlive me
This
I’m sure
As existing



Farmyard walls
Gather moss
Seasons’
Soul saving
Summer’s shade
Winter’s shelter
Sheep in
Foxes out
Tended
Over decades
Owner’s outlived
This
I’m sure
As livelihood are made



Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-04

Summer Pictures

Today
The deadline
Is here...
Whilst
Words
Run away from me
Pictures
Will tell
Some of the summer scenes
My camera sees
Bells and keys
Sunsets
Free





Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-03

Planning

If someone told me when I was a child that life’s journey is seldom a path you can foretell, I would most probably not have believed them. Things were so sure and in place, even when 'in place' was a view over the onderdeur (bottom half of stable door, our only door at the time) and the first spot from where I learnt to tell the time on the church tower. I should have realised then already we moved from there and as part of growing up I learnt to move, deal with death, make new friends and now... with lots of grey hair, I still sometimes yearn for things to be 'sure' and 'safe'.

Manifesto

Some hours on my hands
Gave me a chance
To write
A plan-of-action
What to do
Over the next
Year or more
Daily tasks
Keeping score
Fighting time
Delivering ‘products’
Reading up-to-date
Shy of becoming
A gossip and bore

Some years under my belt
Experience good and bad
Poor decisions sad
Happy moments
In snapshots captured
Senses
With simple flavours enraptured
Climbing trees
Nurtured
Scraped knees
No notebook
Can ever
Trap these

Some worries on my mind
Will I
A final place of peace
In this world find
Love and grace
In heart and soul a place
Offspring
Beat the growing race
Elders
Accept my grown-up fate
Life
Dreams
Wishes
Still have in every heart
A place

By Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-02

Time Passes

Posting a daily blog is what I set myself to do earlier this year. I have lapsed for a few months, but the writing has not completely stopped. Work, the summer vacation and lack of discipline can be all the excuses that can be used to coat the idea that I have let myself and you down. Time to get back on the horse or better still, pounding the keyboard…

Memory Lane
Sometimes
We were woken
At six am
To pick
The weekly order
After classes
During the school holidays
The itchy leaves
Seldom tickled
Green beans
Better fresh
Than pickled

Today
Memories made
The last of the summer crop
Picked
Green beans in the hothouse
Carefully nurtured
Collected sweet and tender
Growing old
With memories laboured
Seeking the familiar
Sometimes
Living is celebrating
Earth’s gifts that keep on giving

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-08-01

Positivity
A positive disposition
Something
I dream about
No emotional
Displacement
Free as a bird
Fluttering about
An inner calm
Stability
No doubts

A positive admission
Is what it’s about
Clear thinking
I chase
Day in and out
Living
Beyond clichés
Ideas to trust
An idealistic dreamer
Always lurking in my heart

A positive approach
The middle way
No doubt
Every breath
Present
Often tough
Time travel
Returning cycles
Seeing the trees for the wood
Still
Needs a lifetime forgiveness
Love

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, 2011-07-25

Mind Movement
We sink and swim
From time to time
Just managing
Heartache and pain
Like the waves
Lapping at the shores
Love
Sometimes
A battle worth more

We strive and excel
From time to time
More than just managing
Laughter and happiness
An embalming breeze
Waving worries away
Love
The precious gift
Building
A true self core

Simone Beatrice Naik Noemdoe, Finished on 2011-07-30.