This is my last blog post as a member of the SAWIP Class of 2012 before we graduate. Undoubtedly, this journey has been one of the most rewarding, and challenging seasons of my life to date. Below is a letter to you, the readers of our blog posts, about closing remarks as I would write in my personal manuscript – my diary entry I guess.

Dear friends and future friends of SAWIP

Understanding you, understanding me

I carry a SAWIP legacy with me. It is uneasy for me to really explain what that means. A lot of it has to do with understanding the next person, situation, and it has to do with understanding myself. Much of this year, and to a large extent my tertiary training has been about courageous conversations and exploring my intellectual imagination. When I try to explain to someone what SAWIP is and what it is to me for the first time, I almost always speak about how it has broadened my world. I am now able to see things in many, different lights. Honestly! I now better understand that with many (if not all) issues, are many facets to assess. There are amongst others cultural, environmental, legal, philosophical, political, psychological, religious, spiritual, scientific, and a whole lot more schools of thought to be evaluated in any given situation. I value that. It’s opened up my world – enlightened it.

Growing pains

During this season of my life, I have been faced with many frustrations, with and for various reasons. Perhaps indirectly, but I have reflected on some of these growing pains in previous blog posts. It has all been worth it. It’s made me more resilient. The growing pains that I have experienced have allowed me to an extent, identify - and I trust will help me fulfil my life’s purpose as it unfolds.

Time management and sacrifice

Managing my time while respecting other people’s time has been a real learning curve. From the very beginning of our SAWIP journey, we were urged to be punctual. We were told that arriving on time meant that we had to arrive earlier than the said time. That means that arriving on the hour of the clock was considered as late. I took this to heart. My father instilled this very principle in me. This principle also largely has to do with meeting the specific, measureable, and time- oriented goals that I make for myself. Maintaining good time management has key elements of sacrifice and accountability. Although I do not always get it right, time management is a principle I strive towards.

I recall a number of times when I had to decline an invitation for a gathering of sorts from friends due to a prior SAWIP engagement. Our SAWIP year, or six month experience to be more precise, was mapped out all in advance. Inasmuch as times, dates and the program occasionally changed, we were all informed of what, where and when, in advance. Of course, we needed to allow for some flexibility when plans did not go precisely as we would have liked. During these times, I thought back to a by quote that is on my vision board by Charles Darwin. The quote reads:

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”

Still on time management and sacrifice, and in line with the above quote, I remember receiving valuable insight from a mother. This memory is from a conversation I had with a lady from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) – Head Quarters where I was a SAWIP summer intern in Washington D.C. The young mother told me that you really only learn and understand what time management and sacrifice is when you become a parent.

Beautiful surprises

Pleasant surprises are beautiful. Over the past six months I have been very deliberate in giving thanks to my life experiences. There have been mundanely palatable occurrences to extraordinary events shared with exceptional individuals. It goes without mention that my SAWIP family (viz. teammates, management and executive teams, DC host fam and IFC colleagues), home family and dearest friends have been part of this experience.

One particular personal example of a cherished beautiful surprise that I experienced was at the IFC. I met a man called Mr Panda who worked at the front desk. We often spoke about jazz and poetry. During my last week at the IFC, I went to go look for Mr Panda to say goodbye. Later that week, I found him in my office about to leave a piece of paper on my desk. It was a poem entitled “Goodbye Makhosazana.”

With that, I give thanks to all the individuals who have been key role players directly and indirectly in my experience as a team member of the SAWIP Class of 2012. It has been real, a real positively life changing experience.

Sincerely

Makhosazana

PS. A toast to visionary and servant leadership that espouses unity and loving kindness!

PPS. A haiku:

valleys grow mountains

journeys are remarkable

SAWIP, I thank you

Self-motivation is an imperative skill in personal growth and development. At various points in our lives, we encounter personal hardships that make us feel unwell. Life can be very difficult during what I call pruning seasons. (Pruning in this instance does not refer to the agricultural practice of selectively removing parts of a plant, but rather, it refers to the seasons in our lives when we undergo changes that leave us feeling like something is missing or has been taken away from us).These seasons vary in length, and are often intense. They require us to practice great resilience and maintain a positive attitude.

I recently came across a TED talk by Neil Pasricha who needed to put in major effort in motivating himself during a pruning season in his life. In his talk, Neil outlines the keys to a satisfying life, he refers to them as the Three A's of Awesome viz; Attitude, Awareness, and Authenticity. I highly encourage that you listen to his story. To prompt you to watching the TED video, here is what Neil briefly says about the Three A’s of Awesome:

Attitude
When bad news hits, you always have two choices:

1. "You can swirl and twirl in gloom and doom forever, or,

2. You can grieve and then face the future with newly sober eyes."

You can choose to move forward and move on, taking baby steps into the future.

Awareness
Appreciate the small wonders around you, as if you're seeing the world for the first time. Embrace your inner three-year-old, remembering that you saw everything you've seen for the first time too.

Authenticity
Be true to yourself. It's about "being you and being cool with that." When you're authentic, you put yourself in places, situations, and conversations that you love and that you enjoy.

We often hear of the notion of how people have “made it.” This view of having “made it” refers to that of success. However, we seldom hear of how, when and why people do not succeed (or rather, why they fail) in their endeavours. During a leadership dinner hosted by SAWIP board member Karin Strydom, we addressed this issue.

Harvey Floyd, from the Center for Creative Leadership, raised the concern on how industry leaders are openly willing to share in their success stories, yet seldom candidly admit their failures. In response to this issue, Renosi Mokate, an executive board director of the World Bank, shared a story in which she acknowledged a letdown. After matriculating top of her class, her parents encouraged her to complete her A-levels because they felt that she was too young to immediately begin her university career. Since she did not particularly want to do her A-levels, this resulted in her not performing very well in her A-level studies. Based on this admitted failure, she had a different mindset and approach when she started her university career. Moreover, in a way of claiming back her potential, she graduated top of her class with her undergraduate degree.

Sharing life experiences and lessons of successes and failures can be an effective tool of mentoring. Whether the outcome of an endeavour results in success or failure depends on the sequence of events following the first step. Often times, this initial step involves a measure of risk. Similarly to the board game of Monopoly that I grew up playing, taking chances may cause uncertainty driven by fear. However, the fear of failure should not be a limitation for taking steps to fulfilling our dreams. Instead, when we recognize our shortfalls, we should take steps to counter them by admitting our imperfections, re-assessing the situation and taking steps to make improvements, and thereby learning through the changes.

I had the honour of making the opening and closing remarks during our (SAWIP) inaugural public conference on 26 June 2012 in Washington, DC. This is how the evening session unfolded.

Good evening

... to greet you with merely a “good evening” now seems as an anti-climax after an afternoon that inspired me to want to greet you all with a traditional ululation.

[The audience ardently joined me with the ululation]

I am Makhosazana Sika. I was raised in Johannesburg, South Africa, in Soweto to be more specific, in an area called Zola. I am a member of the SAWIP Class of 2012 and feel honoured to be here this evening.

Opening remarks

We had wonderful speakers this afternoon - a great big thank you to all of them. On behalf of SAWIP, I would like to in particular thank South Africa’s ambassador to the US, Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool, for his participation earlier this afternoon, and for spending the evening with us as well.

For tonight’s proceedings, our discussion will be a focus on the life and legacy of our former president Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. The most significant inspiration about the life and legacy that uTata Mandela has for me is about hope and dreaming. In his autobiography entitled Long Walk to Freedom (Little, Brown and Company), Nelson Mandela writes:

“I am fundamentally an optimist. Whether that comes from nature or nurture, I cannot say. Part of being optimistic is keeping one's head pointed toward the sun, one's feet moving forward.

There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.”

Those words speak volumes to me. There have been a few times in my life that had I given up, that would have resulted in me feeling disempowered and insecure about my own future. As a message to us all, and in particular to the youth, I believe that uTata Mandela’s words are those of being hopeful and having the ability to dream about an improved nation with empowered people.

At this point, I would like to share a brief story about myself. In 2006, I left home at the age of 17 to go and further my education at the University of Stellenbosch. I grew up in a township, so the notion of going all the way to what you may refer to as the “country-side” in Stellenbosch to pursue a degree in the agricultural industry was not a popular one. However, I was adamant about it.

During my first year, I soon learned that perhaps studying at a university closer to home and closer to what I knew and understood of the world would have been easier. I recall being intimidated when we were told as first years that 60% of us would not make it to the second year of university. Still, I stayed, because I knew why I had come to university. I had and still do have great future hopes.

I believe that education is an investment; it is a gift that keeps on giving.

Vote of thanks

I would like to thank all of our forum participants for their thought-provoking and action-inspiring discourse. Your words have again reminded us of the magnitude that the life and legacy of uTata Mandela embodies.

A big thank you to the Woodrow Wilson Centre for partnering with us [SAWIP] to make this event happen. In particular, a very special thank you to Steve McDonald, Mame Khady Diouf, Derek Langford and Sheila Sengupta. Also, I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the SAWIP team that worked diligently in making this fundraiser event a great success. In particular, thank you to our SAWIP executive director Claire Shoolin; Kim Williams, our SAWIP program manager; and the SAWIP interns: Dinika Govender, Thuli Montana, Molly Sandza, Afua Sarpong and Skye Kussman.

On behalf of the SAWIP Class of 2012, I invite you all to our reception where you will be treated to South African food and wine, as well as a live performance by Washington, DC’s extraordinary jazz vocalist, Akua Allrich. Please join us across the hall and enjoy the rest of the evening!

Thank you

I have found myself being lost. Several times, I have been lost, and have come to find myself. As ambiguous as this is, it has been and is my story. On one hand, I have been lost due to losing direction on my way to a particular destination. While on the other hand, I have also been lost because I simply did not comprehend some or other concept, event, or situation. What holds true about being lost, is that through every encounter, I have found myself. Serendipitously, in one way or another, I have come to discover lessons that have steered me in a specific direction.

I recall being in unplanned, unfamiliar territory, and therefore lost, with company and on my own. During the times that I have been lost with a friend or two, I have always found comfort in knowing that I am not alone. Having someone with me to share in my fears and sense of adventure made the journey of finding the destination less daunting.

My recent trip to the US Consulate for my VISA application proved no different to me being lost. I had prepared as best as I could. However, I got lost along the way. I made several wrong turns. I drove around in circles. And pulled up on more than one occasion to call a friend or ask a fuel attendant to help me find direction, to safely reach my destination. During this time of frantic panic because I was lost, late and thirsty, I had to stop myself to remind myself that I would get to where I needed to go. I had to stay calm. Yes, I was running late. And I knew that there was nothing I could do then to change that. However, what was most important was my safe arrival. At this stage, time became irrelevant. I came to that realisation when I knew that panic would get me nowhere. I had to claim back my composure. The urgency of my situation, the thoughts I had racing in my mind and the vehicles around me, all had me so fixated on being lost, that I had to force myself into a mind shift. I knew that inasmuch as I could and did receive help from friends and friendly strangers, I had to navigate myself to where I needed to go. I had to be self-reliant. No one was going to rescue me. I had, in a sense, and in the words of American essayist, poet and philosopher Henry David Thoreau:

“[I] went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I had come to die, discover that I had not lived.”

I recall declaring to my friend Lungelwa that I actually enjoy being lost. I enjoy the journey and lessons that come with self-discovery. I have been told, and I am learning, that one of the best things about being in your twenties is finding oneself. I believe that spending time alone is key to knowing your true self. Solitude allows us to initially stop, then re-search and re-direct.

As we continue with our daily discoveries, may we remember to ever so often STOP. May we be courageous to reassess our directions and ponder on the following:

to STOP is to Sit Think Observe Plan

Sometimes words escape me. It seems as if I cannot find the words to best explain my thoughts, ideas and feelings. I am fortunate to have found poetry. It is my outlet to try make sense of it all. Below is my first SAWIP poem, it was inspired by nature and people.

Worker ants as active citizens

Everyone stares at the big elephant in the room

They know that it cannot be moved single-handedly

The task seems overwhelmingly insurmountable

Clouds of uncertainty should not cast a shadow of doubt

The elephant is not a mountain; therefore, it can be moved

The vision is clear

Plans are made and a model is developed

A strategy is in place

Seasons change. It has always been a dynamic equilibrium

Elastic flexibility in the master plan was in place

Autumn winds and frostbite winter

Arab Spring and summer harvests

The silence is breaking

(I fail to understand why is was golden)

We are recruiting for worker ants

We are in the business of fostering symbiotic relationships

We will eat the elephant one bite at a time

Rumour has it it’s the best way to right the wrongs

Slowly, surely, trusting worker ants get to work

Together everyone accomplishes more