Thursdays are currently my Sunday, my one day off work where I don’t do anything unless its for me: go for a run; have a coffee date; sit on my terrace and write; binge watch tv; sew or even mundane stuff like the washing and cleaning. Between 8:30 and 15:00, my time is- for the most part, my time.
Today was supposed to be coffee-date morning, but it was cancelled and a little too late for me to change into my running clothes to prepare to run the 5kms home, (I’m trying to get a little bit fitter for when we’re in SA and either du m’amies meilleurs ou ma chère sĹ“ur decide we need to go out running together when we see each other. You never know…) so I have decided to play my U2 albums over the computer, loud enough to give me background music while I sit on my kitchen terrace, overlooking the farm fields and spend some time writing.
It’s been a long time since I passed any type of commentary about my kids education, so a quick recap: Alex and Beth attend a French school, with the added benefit of a daily language lesson from the age of 3. Mainstream French schools offer either English or German (or Spanish, it depends on which part of the country you’re in), although from the early stages, it’s limited to one lesson per week. In our kids’ case, they have an entire course in English (German, Polish, Italian, Spanish are the other courses available between the 2 International Schools). Over the 5 years we have been here, we have built a relationship with the English teachers as the 3 teachers are responsible for teaching 5 age groups of kids over the 5 years of primary school. We’ve become pretty au fait with their style and their curriculum, which makes it all much easier. Every year, they theme their lessons around a collective idea, be it friendship, fairies, dreams, or this year, apparently its animals. They also do a class trip for the 3rd Years, a theatre week for the 4th Years, and every year they celebrate the Americans’ Thanksgiving Day, their Independence Day, and as well as the Canadian Independence Day, they learn about St Patricks Day, St George’s Day, they have Christmas parties before break-up in December etc etc etc… each of these provides a teaching moment that’s essentially not French. The part objective for the language lessons is to actually SPEAK the language in the class… and while this is a given for Alex and Beth, it’s important to remember that the International School is just that….filled with children from a variety of other countries, where English is not their first language, so celebration days makes it more fun learning I think.
As you might have realised by now, I am somewhat fatiguĂ©e with the American celebrations, and after I have moaned about it on the sidelines to my friends, I decided to do something about it this year, and suggested a little bit of a South African celebration. In hindsight, I guess it’s pretty selfish of me to want this- because soon enough the Polish might want their day, we could in fact celebrate Ramadan, Sweden Day, an Iceland celebration, a Lebanese one, the list goes on.
Of course, it begs the question- which of the SA public holidays would I suggest? The sad political ones (Human Rights Day and Youth Day) are largely inappropriate for this occasion. Woman’s Day is in the summer holidays (and Europe [the rest of the world in fact] celebrates their own Woman’s Day in any case), and while April 27th is really recognised as our National Day (IMO), it doesn’t really fit the idea I had in mind, unless they were to tie it in with Martin Luther King Day. Which leaves us with Heritage Day.
So, with the adage in mind “if you don’t ask, you won’t ever know”, I put it to the English teacher I bumped into at rentrĂ©e to see if they could fit it in this month. Without any pressure, I simply suggested it, talking about Heritage Day, that it’s a day where we celebrate our culture, about our roots and where we came from. Ms S thought about it, and asked if I would object if we didn’t make about South Africa specifically, but encourage the kids to dress up, bring food or speak about their own cultural and heritage? HELL YES, OF COURSE!!!
English classes kicked off on Monday (they’re always a week late to start), and et voila, there is a note in their books to mention that they will be celebrating Heritage Day on the 24th September. Queue mad panic in my house now….. WHAT ARE MY CHILDREN GOING TO WEAR??????? The English gave up on long frocks centuries ago, as did the Afrikaans. I don’t have a kilt…. or do I?? Mmm? (It’s okay, I have shweshwe skirts emblazoned with Madiba, and beaded sandals, those will do, but it brings up my other reason for writing, if I can get on to that point). The other debate will be what snacks to send- milk tart? Vetkoek and mince? Bunny chow? Hah, given I have to work the night before Heritage Day, it may be up to my awesome hubby learning from his Mum via telephone call how to make vetkoek! Although, I’m pretty sure if school gave permission, he would take the day off and go and cook up a braai on the school premises.
Knowing how much we as parents have on our plate, I now feel guilty about adding an extra occasion on the calendar (I am so fed up with making pancakes for February’s pancake day) but I gather from my kids that there is a fair bit of excitement about the upcoming Heritage Day. Plus I am really happy with the teachers decision to open it up to ALL cultural space.
For me, every year (and this is what I want to write about every September) I read the online racial bickering about how the ‘whities’ have claimed everything for themselves, even changing Heritage Day to Braai Day (which is in all likelihood a marketing ploy to sell more meat, beer and brandy), and how all of a sudden every little white kid wants to wear Zulu beads and Basotho blankets- because who wouldn’t? – and how we always have to make it about ourselves (as the more paler part of South Africa.) It makes me so sad that on a day where we actually can stand up as one nation, as opposed to feel guilty and seek atonement for what our ancestors did to oppress others. Instead we get accused of being self serving. I feel that it’s a day that we should embrace each other as equals and relish what we can learn from each other. Our kids are going to be teaching each other in their classes about where they all come from, about their traditional clothes, the food they eat in their homes, they’re going to be educating each other. And dammit, why does this concept bring tears to my eyes?
Right. Vent over. That little whinge has been lingering here for too many years. Hopefully this year I won’t read anything like that and I would have said this all in vain.
The up-side to celebrating Heritage Day is the line of conversation now opening between Alex and me. It’s a chance for me to teach her something that we may not really have ever been able to speak about. She says she would like to explain to her class about Heritage Day, and according to a Google search 2 years ago, Heritage Day was put on the government calendar at the behest of the IFP in order commemorate Shaka Day.Trying to explain to a group of 10 year olds who in fact King Shaka of the Zulus was, and that he died on this day of 24th September may prove more challenging that I expect it, but maybe images of great fighting warriors clad in animal pelt and great shields will draw their attention. Needless to say, it’s not going to be Pancake Day, St Paddy’s Day, Thanksgiving or Independence Day ;-).
Anyway, that’s my time for today. I will put this to rest, hopefully repair any further typo’s I’ve not yet fixed, and then be on my merry bicycle to collect the kids from school. We’re having nachos for dinner, and maybe they can make it today? Which reminds me, that I really need to add a few more recipes onto this site that some friends have been asking for. Next week, I hope, I will get to that.
’til next time then my friends, I wish you a happy weekend.
My love and best wishes,
As always,
Gaenor
Xxx
Pinot, Bretzels, and Cathedrals 