REDEEMED PIONEER

  Two weeks ago I published DEAR DIARY, a reflection on the diary entries for 27 September going back 9 years, starting in 2015.    Today is 27 September 2024, and at 07:07 this morning, my precious, PERFECT & precocious Micah is exactly 6 years old.    On this day six years ago, I was wide awake by 01:30 and decided to get up and bake cupcakes while I wait for the good news and that first picture of my first grandbaby.    At 07:39 my goofy firstborn son, Daniel, sent me a picture of the left hand of his newborn son making the Star Trek Vulcan sign for LIVE LONG AND PROSPER.    Truth be told, I had to look it up as I am neither a Trekkie fan nor do I believe that any created being can determine the longevity and prosperity of another.    But I have come to cherish that cute hand picture, and for this reflection today, I took another hand picture of the same little hand, now 6 years later. In mathematics, the number 6 is considered to be a PERFECT number as it is the sum of all (exc

Red.    Orange.     Yellow.     Green.     Blue.     Indigo.     Violet.       The colours of the rainbow.     Today we celebrate Heritage Day in my beloved rainbow nation of sunny South Africa and I would like to share my reflection on this particular holiday.     I really enjoy the idea of using the bright colours of the rainbow as an analogy to describe the diversity of our beautiful nation.     In simple terms, bright rainbow colours are formed when sunlight is refracted through water droplets or even artificial light through a prism.     However, when the colour white is added to rainbow colours, it distorts the original colours and diminishes its brightness, red becomes pink and the other colours become pastel colours. South African heritage refer to a comprehensive set of elements (such as knowledge, tradition, language, culture, artifacts, monuments, values and identity) left as a legacy from previous generations representing every people group in our nation.    It is indeed im

Excerpts from the bittersweet diary entries (on 27 September, spanning 9 years) of a mother, mother-in-love and grandmother 27 September 2015: Yesterday was a perfectly beautiful day for an afternoon wedding on Scottburgh’s beach on the KZN South Coast.    Although most of the morning was filled with intermittent, mild thundershowers, it had cleared completely well before 16:00.    Almost as if these showers were sent just to wash away all of the remaining murky pollution in the air.    It certainly set the stage for a bright, beautiful sunny afternoon and a breathtaking sunset to round off a perfect wedding day.    My handsome firstborn son, Daniel, married his beautiful beloved Carli.    Looking even more glamorous than the princes and princesses from the glossy pages of famous fairytales, their intentional decision to appear barefeet added a strikingly unmatched elegance to their unique beauty.    There is now another Mrs Van Aswegen in the AssieTribe, my precious petite daughter-in