Part 5 Simon didn’t say much. He didn’t have the energy to. Simon (pronounced ‘Sih-mon’ in Afrikaans) is 10 years old but weighs much less than my own 6 year old boy. Who is hardly a big lad himself. Simon is malnourished. Along with his sister, he is an orphan and sleeps wherever he can […]
No Tantrums in the Townships
(Part 3) I’ll admit that something I was rather stressed about when returning to Namibia was the way that my kids would behave in public. It doesn’t take a genius to notice that in general, African kids who live in the sub-Saharan countries are less … hyper … shall we say – than kids from […]
Charity *did* begin at home …
DOES CHARITY MATTER? (Part 1) Should we care about the way we talk to each other as adults – and to our children – when it comes to the subject of ‘charity’ and ‘giving’? When our schools send requests for a few quid so that our kid can dress up as a certain bear/sport a […]
For the ‘Chicks’…AND the Chaps
Women and Men in The West – regardless of their upbringing or education or politics… or of how well-read they are often don’t realise how different the paradigm is for girls and women (and the men in their lives) when it comes to equality and gender issues in the most developed and marganalised communities in […]
Gnomes, Thongs and The Needy
People have always misused charitable concerns for their own ends. And sadly, some charities themselves have often not been the best adverts for an ethical and a sensible approach to raising money for causes. But most recently, things seem to have gone from the sublime to the ridiculous. Readers of this blog will know that […]