Reading at Dustcovers Bookshop with Athol Fugard, Nico Zaverdinos and Paula Fourie...

An Ode to Whiskey

These late night libations

Warm comfort for my soul

Hanging out and drinking

I don’t want to go home.

Been staring since morning

Into your golden come-hither eye

And the lip of this glass

Is my temptress’ smile.

These late night libations

Liquid kisses for my soul

I’d rather spend my time with you

I don’t want to go home.

When no-one else had the time

You always stuck around

And always when they closed the door

Your hot embrace is what I found.

So pop that cork and fill me up

Let it spill over the brim

And keep singing your sweet love song

Because it helps to ease the pain.

These late night libations

Like an ever burning flame

Intoxicated conversations

That keeps me sane.

Sing to me and hold me tight

And never let me go

The sweet lullaby of your oblivion

Is all I want to know.

Just keep talking to me Amber

Keep saying that I’m okay

And one day I promise

Your love will be repaid.

The Mirror

I have been doing creative workshops with kids since 1997. Over the years I have conducted workshops throughout the country and with kids from as young as 8 to youth in their 20’s and sometimes even older; and the one thing that always strikes me is the similarity of these young people’s reality.

One of the standard discussions is about the problems facing communities and without fail –irrespective of place, age, culture or language – crime, substance abuse, unemployment, abuse and violence are mentioned. The understanding of the problems obviously differs, but most young people believe that someone else should fix these social ills.

Young people are taught and are made to believe that they are powerless and they grow up to become another generation of complacent adults who are satisfied with their lot of being transgressors or victims.

As a collective – globally – we are these complacent adults who hide behind the safe excuses we assume through experience, or knowledge, or class or race or genealogy and even gender.

We are society and this society is sick.

I am sick of listening to able bodied people saying that there is no choice; that this is how and what it is and the best and only thing to do is to try to find a way to fit into the fuck-up.

If that is what the adults believe – the parents of children and the living examples – what hope is there for any child?

How does the future which you see look? Or do the limits of your imagination prevent you from seeing the world that your child will be a part of?

Everyday millions more are born into this festering illness and parents continue to be proud and happy that they have given this disease to their children.

And all the reasons are just excuses and all the proof is just justification. Until we all decide to do something as individuals and the collective we will continue to pray for salvation that we believe is not ours within this lifetime: maybe in death, in the afterlife.

How stupid can we be? What little faith and belief we have in ourselves; how petty and insignificant we are to think that we are not deserving of any better; how limited the horizons of our dreams when all we want is what we have already been given?

And so mindlessly self absorbed that we do not care; we do not have the will or the volition to do anything unless we are told, unless a leader comes along to take us there. Is it really in our nature as a species to be this apathetic?

No! It is not! We have allowed ourselves to become these callously complacent and complicit weaklings who continue to be spectators in our own lifetimes.

And the children are the future but the future is already here, being created as you read this, and nothing will change until we start to change ourselves but that won’t happen because we all think we are right and that everyone else must be more like us, but in so doing we deny what we could be and what we could create and we kill the mere notion of humanity.

Ode To the Allemanns

Often life’s journey presents so much more

Than all the anticipation; exceeding every expectation

More even than can be conjured by my most vivid imagination

Such is the case upon this landscape which I now traverse

Which has served to restore my faith in the universe.

I came to this place with a singular focus

Intent that nothing would detract from my purpose

To record a tale of my own mad creation

A tale of pain and triumph; a story of this nation

I travelled alone, companioned only by my own jaded preconception.

From the moment that I arrived I was made to feel at home

Here where a part of my soul will now always reside

A solitary wanderer but no longer alone

Amidst the silence and birdsong and the freedom to be

Amongst strangers, no longer, where I could just be me.

And from that very first moment I’ve been struggling to put down

The words that would suitably express my heartfelt gratitude

My deepest, humble appreciation of your kindness

For having had the honour and the pleasure

For having been granted this opportunity to be a part of this beauty.

And still the words fail to convey all that I feel

So instead I will just say my Thank You to you now

For your open arms and the bounty of your hearts

For sharing your lives and your love and the ready laughter

But thank you most of all for your honesty and being all of you.

The 2013 Fillum Projek!

The arts project kicked off last week. This year the kids will be making a film. After the usual introductory engagement last week, I had them watching John Frederick's documentary about the life of Mister Devious. Needless to say they were enthralled as is evident by the expressions. I had to cut it short though because it was the end of the day for them and it is Monday! But weary and hungry aside, this group shows promise.

Its going to be an intense journey of learning and discovering and growing for all of us, but I am confident that come September, these kids will have produced a 'fillum' that they will all be proud of.

http://lettiedeklerkprimaryschoolartsproject.blogspot.com/2013/03/2013-film-project-2nd-workshop.html

Contemporary Commentary...

As long as we are going to be looking at the current issues in this country with our blinkered (read racial, cultural, linguistic, geographic, gender etc.) stereotypes intact we are as much a part of the problem as any individual or group that can be blamed. Like it or not (as has been said by more eloquent writers numerous times before), until we all have as much or as little as everyone else, we will be at risk of being overwhelmed by these problems that have always beset us: corruption, police brutality, crime... These are symptoms of social inequality and no government anywhere! will fix what is broken unless every single citizen takes responsibility for their own actions: without any false religious, cultural or class morality, but with a growing sense of humanity that is unfortunately lacking throughout the world. All the spin that gets published and broadcast about foreign investment, development and legislative/policy reform is just that, SPIN! Governments all over the world are sponsored and supported by finance first and secondly through the votes of 'the masses'. Until we dismantle the controlling forces of economics, we will not live in a just society with equal opportunity and dignity. And still, we subscribe to the failed systems of capitalism and neo-liberal politics. Methinks it is time for us all to wake up to the horror of our own prejudices and do some soul-searching before pointing a finger that only serves to expose our own bigotry.

Reading rooms...

A Love Letter for the Epoch is all but sold out! I have six copies remaining which will be kept for the eventual Namibia reading. Whoever didn't get their copy yet will not have a copy because I have decided not to do a second print run. As is, my self-publishing project has been a success and I thank everyone who has in any way contributed and supported this venture. And to the rest, well... Next time...

A Love Letter for the Epoch - Readings

I will be reading selections from A Love Letter for the Epoch in Grahamstown at the Eastern Star Education Centre in Anglo African Street on Tuesday the 26th of February and at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum in Park Drive in Port Elizabeth on Wednesday the 27th of February. Both events start at 17h30. For more information email me at mikeywentworth@hotmail.com

The Con-game - From the play Waiting.

They call it the mating game, but I think it’s more like a con game. In the first place, you have to make eye con-tact which if you are lucky leads to a smile and maybe even a con-versation. The point of the con-versation of course is to con-vince the other person that with or without con-traception, the two of you really should con-summate your bond, but unfortunately the intimate act of con-summation leaves one of you feeling as if they are in con-trol and the other feeling con-fused. And what’s more, if you are lucky, you won’t con-tract any STI’s because nowadays, there are those kinds of con-sequences when it comes to sexual con-quests.

After the Cape Town launch...

Myself, Abdel Naroth and James Matthews

The Cape Town Launch Poster

Please feel free to print a copy and stick it wherever you please...

Donovan Ward & Hilton Schilder on Bang-Bang

I am honoured to have the brilliant visual artist Donovan Ward and prolific multi-instrumentalist and composer Hilton Schilder join me at the Cape Town launch for an improvised expression session on the poem Bang-Bang. Such a pity that I will be part of this and not able to watch it all unfold! So please bring your video cameras along to capture this unique spectacle!