Riding the wind

When I was young, I used to make plastic kites and fly them all day, or for several days. It was great fun especially on those windy days. A kite uses an aerodynamic surface to create a lift and overcome gravity to fly in the wind. The lift that sustains the kite in the air is created when air flows above the kite's surface, producing low pressure above and high pressure below the wings. In December 2014 while in Durban, I saw a kite surfer, something I had not quite seen before, considering that my only kite experience was the home made kite from my early years. I found it intriguing and the surfer was very good at it and was clearly enjoying himself as he knew well how to do it. There is kite boarding which is a surface water sport combining various aspects such as wake-boarding, windsurfing, surfing, paragliding, and gymnastics into one extreme sport. A kite boarder harnesses and uses the power of the wind on a large power kite and is propelled across the water on a kite board similar to a small surfboard, with or without foot straps. Kite surfing is a form of kite boarding which is related to wave riding and uses standard surfboards. There are different styles of kite boarding and in 2012, the number of kite surfers was estimated at 1.5 million people worldwide. A kite surfer ensures an optimal balance between the wind speed and direction and the power of the kite to ensure that the kite surfing experience is enjoyable. He then rides the waves with air jumps and all sorts of tricks and stunts thanks to the wind and surfing skills with reading of correct angles combined. Power kites are very powerful and can, if control is lost, cause injury an optimal balance between the winds speed and direction and the power of the kite to ensure that the kite surfing experience is enjoyable.

He then rides the waves thanks to the wind and surfing skills. Power kites are very powerful and can, if control is lost, cause injury to the surfer. The surfer needs to maintain control of the kite to be able to manage maneuvers as well as dictate what he wants from the kite. Strong winds or unexpected gusts can lead to bad impact which can cause harm. Like a kite surfer, life is about ensuring that you are always in charge of that kite board and anticipating strong winds that can destabilize you. One needs to always be in control of their present, anticipate the future and be mindful of the past. Losing control of  your environment can mean falling off the board into the water or worse, hitting objects and getting hurt. Not all winds are good for surfing and surfers know that

cross-shore and cross- onshore winds are the best for kite boarding. Offshore winds pose the danger that one can be blown away from the shore in the event of equipment failure or loss of control while direct onshore winds carry the risk of being thrown onto land and possibly falling into buildings or dangerous objects. Always ensure that you can handle the winds you are surfing and choose your winds carefully as some winds are ruthless and not worth taking out to surfing. Do you know the winds you are dealing with? You can ride the wind, or lose your balance to it and fall. Enjoy the ride.

Beauty and value from pain

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The story of the pearl is quite an interesting one. Pearls are formed from a defense action (adaptive
immune system like function) to a potentially threatening irritant such as a parasite inside the shell or an attack that injures the tissue of a shelled mollusk. The mollusk then creates a pearl sac to seal off the irritant and the membrane deposits or secretes layers of calcium carbonate over the irritant. This process is repeated many times until a pearl is produced and this happens over a couple of years. Perfectly round pearls are rare to find and so are fine quality natural pearls, which are deemed rare jewels whose values are determined in the same way as precious gems subject to size, colour, shape, quality, surface, orient and luster. What is the point to the story of the pearl? Life is not much different from the story of a pearl. Not every high flying successful person has had it easy sailing to be where they are. Most have grown through life by creating counter measures, defense mechanisms and immune systems to irritating situations, some even painful and

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threatening. Every difficulty and challenge is an irritant that needs to be covered in a pearl sac with secretions of positive words and encouragement until it is totally covered up and a pearl comes out after a while. There are business empires founded on difficulty and irritant issues on someone's personal life or on society in general. It is how we look at things that determines our destiny. If an irritant is something we cannot get over, it can pull us down, but if we can get over it and cover it with our zeal and passion for life and overcome it, we will rise and create something of more value. How do you overcome irritants, get the right input into your difficult situation, especially the positive kind. Get the right speech on your tongue and you will rise above it. Remain confident that you will overcome and believe in yourself and you will become a highly prized pearl after you have engulfed that irritant. When people see the result of your private fight against odds, adversity, difficulty and battles you face in life, they will only admire the value they see without knowing the struggles you have been through and the time it has taken for that value creation process. Nothing of sustainable value happens overnight, black gold (oil) develops over years, diamonds are a result of rock, carbon extreme heat and pressure and the pearl is a result of years of fighting an irritant. Keep calm and create value for yourself.

Contentment: Case of the dripping tap 2

Oprah Winfrey once said "Be thankful for what you have, you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough”. After an insatiable episode of human nature, there is contentment that also pervades the way we live. I have met people who have never left their village, town, city or country and have come to understand it as normal. They have always stayed where they were born and never really felt the need to see anything outside that. They are content with their life as it is. I have spoken to people who do not have a passport, travel is not their plan. Does it mean this person is not as goal oriented as one who has traveled? I do not think so. Within that space of contentment in the little, one will find goals thriving within such a person. They are pursuing their dreams within contentment. Being insatiable does not necessarily mean one is not content for there are areas of contentment and in-satiation within one person  (#human complexity). Contentment to one is in-satiation to another and vice versa. I further look at a water tap, I think to myself, yes a tap can drip, but it doesn't mean that is all it can give. It can give more. Also, the tap can be tightly shut but it does not mean it is now disconnected from its source, it still is connected and can at any time pour out water. All it takes is a trigger, a hand to open that tap and water starts to flow again. If I was the dripping tap, what would I be thinking. I would probably be thinking that yes I am releasing small drops of water now, but I am connected to the source and so I can release more at any time when needed. We all need triggers to get our taps running, but sometimes we are content with who we are and what we have achieved, and it does not take away from the massive source of whatever we have and can do for ourselves or for others whether around us, or far from us. The tap can be opened and we can start once again pursuing something. Our lives are punctuated by contentment in a start - stop - continue manner, where the tap closes and opens when the right moments and triggers come about. We all have reservoirs that we are connected to, in form of experiences, mental capacity, talents, gifts and our passion centers. While we get content in certain areas and during certain times, our reservoirs are continuously there to supply as needed when the triggers come around and we start pursuits of something else, Be it starting a business, philanthropic endeavors, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, or other personal exploits, once the trigger goes off, we move into our destiny. Find part one of this article here

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Take the anger out of a stranger

Everyone who drives in Africa will know of the people that stand at traffic lights and make many a driver angry and annoyed as they try to sell you something or give you promotional material of some sort? Of course there are also those who try to clean your car before the light turns green (call it instant car wash), whether you like it or not. Well I had a different experience last week as I opened my window to receive a red rose with a note saying " do something nice today for a total stranger". What an action oriented and pleasant surprise as well as food for thought!! Believe me or not, I tried to look for a website or telephone number because I thought these were marketers who would have put their contacts there for me to maybe peruse their products or something, but I found none. This is is what motivated me to write about this incident. Doing something good for someone with no thought of something back in return. Do we still have this in our world? Well I can testify that we do after my experience of the day, but maybe we do not have enough of such incidents or people willing to be the one doing it. This is a great humane wave to spread around, for people to just do things for strangers without expecting anything in return, but leave the next person feeling warm and fuzzy inside and still believing in humanity and oneness. There is a lot of strangers around you who can receive something from you, and it does not have to be of value and not necessarily money. A smile seems expensive these days so giving one could be a good thing for a start. Allowing someone to go first in a queue? Stopping to ask someone if everything is well with them when they look stressed, confused or disoriented, offering something priceless to someone. Whatever it is let us do it as a challenge to do something nice for a total stranger today and comment about the effect it makes. I recall giving a young boy from the street, "street kid" as they are called, a pair of old shoes more than 10 years ago and to this day, whenever I drive past where he hangs around in town he comes to have a chat with me without expecting money from me. What have you done for a stranger lately? Have a great day.

The power of a dream

Image: Dominic Skelton

Andile "Given" Sibanyoni , received a police officer's burial at his funeral in March 2015. Andile was only 8 years old when he died, but had held on to the dream of becoming a metro police officer so dearly that it was made "reality" for him for a day in 2014 while he was alive and then finally as he was honored with a police officer's burial by the City of Tshwane. More than 100 metro police officers went out to the small town of Piterskraal, Mpumulanga, on the day of his funeral to pay Given their last respects. The Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) ceremonial unit, (a drill team, choir and band) performed and sang alongside community members at the funeral. Andile left a great lesson for people who carry their dreams lightly and think they can never achieve them. Dreams can come true whether you are dead or alive, as proven by Andile. Andile lost his battle with cancer but had always wanted to be a metro cop and specifically to ride the police motorcycles. In November 2014, his dreams were made reality when he visited the Metro Police Department and spent a day in the life of a metro police officer thanks to Reach for a Dream. Reach for a Dream representative Mpumi Mlambo said the day's parade was an indication of just how big Given's dreams were.Reach for a dream believes in the power

of dreams and has made it its mission to help children fight life threatening diseases while reaching their various dreams and the story of Andile is one among many. If a young man like Andile could carry his dream to such an extent where he got a whole metro police department to honor him as a real cop, how much more can we do to achieve our dreams? This is just my short story today to encourage you to hold on to your dream and pursue it with all you have. Someone relevant will notice your efforts and support you to reach that dream.

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