The Restory Retreat Centre

Vuzi, one of the cattle herders working for our landlord Johan, wants a TV cabinet. Actually, in his words, he needs it. “OK Vuzi, what must it look like?” “No, you are the carpenter, you must make me one.” “I cannot make you one if I don’t know what you have in mind.” “It must be a TV cabinet.” “Yes I know Vuzi, but do you only want your TV in that cabinet, or are you going to put other stuff in there as well? You must make me a drawing. It can be very basic, just so that I can see what you want.” A week later he returns with the drawing on a small piece of paper. There are no measurements or dimensions. The television obviously has centre stage, but there must also be room for his “cloth” speakers (apparently they are upholstered with material) on the sides, his dvd’s on a shelf at the top and the amplifier on a shelf at the bottom. “Thank you Vuzi. How big is your TV? And the size of your speakers and amplifier?” “It is a big TV. And the speakers are also big.” “OK,...

We’re having a bumper Summer season. Wonderful rains cause all the rivulets to gush and gurgle like they haven’t for three consecutive seasons. It is lush and green and simply gorgeous everywhere around us. Cattle shine like polished stones where they lie ruminating in the pastures amongst wildflowers and frolicking calves. It’s the way I’ve always imagined heaven would look like. And we have swallows. Hundreds of tiny fighter pilots that descend on us every morning, swooping and diving just above the lawn. We also have flies. Hordes of them, caused by a combination of factors: a cattle feeding lot that was recently started close by, very high temperatures and all this rain. We’re doing everything we can to handle the problem without resorting to chemical means: burners with peppermint and citronella oil work well to repel the pesky things inside our home. Outside we have bags of flybait that fill up alarmingly quickly. But still, it is not enough. Walking or sitting...

* Stefan is een van Johan se werkers wat soggens die beeste melk. Ons het die weelde om dan, sonder dat ons hoef te bekommer oor voer of beeste aanjaag, koei-warm melk uit die kan te gaan skep. Een oggend dra ek 'n paar ou tekkies van my saam met ons beker af melkery toe. "This is a size 8, Stefan. Do you think you can use them? What size are you?" Met groot belangstelling word die skoene by my gevat en van alle kante bekyk. "I wear a size 9," sê hy, "or 8..." Die waterskoene word uitgetrek en die tekkies aangepas. Vir 'n rukkie staan hy doodstil met sy oë stip teen die een muur asof hy sy brein kans gee om wat daar onder gebeur ordentlik te registreer. Dan skielik stamp hy elk van sy voete met die "nuwe" tekkies aan hard op die grond. "Yes, they fit," kondig hy met 'n breë glimlag aan. Met my vol beker melk loop ek terug huis toe en dink aan Dalene Matthee se Fiela se Kind . Wanneer Elias ...

The unfinished “The Adoration of the Magi” by Leonardo da Vinci (1480) I am slow.  I love to dawdle, look at this and that, get sidetracked, explore more and get lost in the detail.  This should not be confused with laziness. I’m really not lazy. I can work extremely hard, for long periods on end. I get a lot of things done; it just takes me longer than most. I am usually one step behind and not on schedule. I frustrate people who are efficient and fast. Of course it has its drawbacks and a negative side. It is not a very effective strategy if you want to pay the bills every month by producing a large number of things. My output, in terms of quantity, will never make me rich.  It often makes me feel guilty because judging by productivity, efficiency and time-is-money-standards I really do not make the grade. As I’ve said before, most of the time I feel out of step with culture and Western society, or to be more precise, that part of culture and s...