Bakhulu, I call on your spirits...

---As day comes and night falls, For the rest of our life we'll miss y'all, And even though life must go on, we'll still mourn, While wishin' y'all were home----Just A Moment by Nas ft. Quan

Ntate moholo Mochela le 'M'e Mpolai

Bakhulu bam,

Ke ea le lumelisa baholo, I usher my respects to you as I cock my gratitude filled glock towards your eternal presence in my life.

Balimo ba Tloung le Taung, ba ha Maliehe le ba ha Ts’iu, ke bua ka uena Mochela Nehemia, mora Khethang le ‘Mamochela, your child like faith in the miracles of God stays with me to this day. Your firm belief that education would be the only escape to a better life has humbled me towards tolerance of a system that I still battle to make peace with. For you, I will persist on this life long quest for knowledge.

Nkhono Mamatsepe Montlafi Justina Pitso-Ts'iu

I speak to you Nkhono Justina Montlafi thope ea ha Pitso. Uena ‘Mae ea Matsepe, Maphutsi le Mpolai. You left us too early in life yet I still preserve memories of your warm and wonderful smile; you were a mother to everyone who stepped into your turf. Nkhono you truly were the mother of all nations, the immensity of your heart will be reflected in generations to come, I uphold your teachings for the children I will bear, and your lady-like mannerisms for the earth daughters I will raise. My bibi, continue to send these calm energies from the skies in which your spirit now rests in, everyday, clothe my heart with your essence and hold my hand tight as I march on in this war of life. Whisper to me in the voices of angels; speak with me in the language of heaven. 

Ntate-moholo Motema, ke cho uena mora’ ‘Mamothibeli le Motsamai, I greet you in spirit as I hail your being. Your undeniable presence in my life has protected me from the evils that we live amongst. Tata-mkhulu, the echoes to your teachings remain intact, I still fill my shelves with dozens of books as you did, and six o’clock every evening is still a constant reminder of our family prayer time, and that same prayer is still the key I use to unlock all the promises made to me. I ask that you fix your gaze on me, that you summon, on my behalf, Balimo ba ha Maliehe to carry on sending their blessings towards my endeavors. You are still to me, the author that began stories of my bloodline; you are still the leader that held no title and you will for years to come, be the fountain from which I gather my strength.

Ntate moholo Motema le nkhono Matinkane

Mam’khulu who is my namesake, nkhono Matinkane, descendant of Mokhoabane, I acknowledge your guidance; I beam at the feel of your touch on my soul. It sounds outlandish
but your visits during most nights have driven wells of tears to my eyes. They said I wouldn't, but I knew I would see you again; your light still shines through me. I try to find some kind of relevance in you passing on the very first day I arrived at Rhodes, is it how you chose to keep open the doors to my education? I pray everyday that you keep those doors ajar and that those in our lineage, who are there with you, lead me towards a world of wisdom. Nkho ‘Mapulits’oeu I take you with me everywhere I go, just the way you did with me when I was younger, I have grown to stand my ground and speak out on my beliefs just like you once lived to do. Some say ke bohale joale ka uena bitso oa ka, but that is not the case, just like you, ke mpa ke se na pelo ea manyala!

Rakhali Moliehi, ts’ehlana ea ha Maliehe, semomotela sa ‘Matinkane le Motema. Uena hee and the rest of bo Rakhali taught me about playfulness, about being forever young and taking my inner child with me wherever I go. Rakhali you had such big dreams so much that ke ntse ke sa kholoe hore ke uena ea re thobetseng joalo. Empa hee seeing you through dreams somehow soothes the void you left me with when you left this world. From the paradise that you now soar at, Akha Ts’oufu, I invite you to look into my heart, to convey its hopes and wishes to the universe and the God that I entrust my life’s dreams on.

Elders, I know that all of my encounters are of your doing, nothing is by chance, and there are no coincidences in my existence. It is through all of you that I abide to the belief that everything happens for a reason. I know my failures are for a reason, I know that I also succeed for a reason; I understand that all of my tears are not in vain, the heartbreaks I have stomached and all of the joys I have experienced, it is all because every single one of you has spared me, has fought to strengthen me and to ready me for the achievements of tomorrow. It is through you that I know that to live like a Queen in the future, I must work like a slave today. For these teachings, I cannot thank all of you enough.

Ancestors of mine- all of you, I am amazed at the opportunities that life has presented to me, I am in awe of the miracles I step into on a daily basis. I have no words to express my gratefulness for the journeys that you have embarked me on, for the ventures that you have open-handedly exposed me to. Ha kena ona mantsoe a teboho ka ts’epo eo le nang le eona ho ‘na baholoane ba ka, le sirullotse pelo eaka mahlonokong a lefats’e, ke ne ke mamele lithuto tsa lona, ha le ne le re ho ‘na ke lelale, ke ts’epe leholimo ka matsatsi ohle.

Le ha e le mona tsenene e bohloko ea lefu e nkarohantse le lona, ke na le ts’epo e tiileng ea hore meea ea lona e phomotse ka khotso, ‘me e tla lula e ntataisa likhohlong tsa bophelo.  

Balimo ba ka, I ask that you raise your fists in consent, I plead that you breathe your powers through me and that you open for me the gates of happiness. Bakhulu, show me the colors of freedom, be the light that brightens up all of my days, the rhythm that steers me to greener pastures. Anoint me with the teachings of your generation so that I may do the same for the offspring of your and my descent. Teach me the ways of Afrika, show me the deeds of ubuntu so that in all of my days, I walk with the comprehension of who I am.

Until next post,

Africa Rising, Peace & Revolution...