ED’S LETTER

I’m so inspired by the story of the 20 South African teens who calmly built their own aeroplane (in two weeks, from a South African-made kit), then flew it from Cape Town to Cairo (and back again). I love their spirit and confidence

– to me it embodies an attitude

particular to South Africans that’s a kind of weird mixture of ubuntu and ‘’n boer maak ’n plan’. ‘The purpose is to show Africa, and even the world, that anything is possible if you set your mind to it,’ said the pilot, Megan Werner. She founded U-Dream Global, which was behind the whole enterprise. Megan is 17 years old.

I can’t really define this spirit other than that, in general, I think South Africans don’t like being told what we can’t do. We are not big fans of having other people’s expectations imposed on us.

I think it’s why we so often win sports games from the position of underdog – it’s a kind of stubborn resilience that makes us defy the doubters. It’s there in Johnny Clegg (page 22), who insisted on playing music with the musicians he wanted to work with, even though it was illegal at the time, and Angel Jones (page 12), who doggedly goes against the brain drain and recruits emigrants back to live and work in and contribute to South Africa.

That same spirit is also clear in the three amazing entrepreneurs who won the FAIRLADY Santam Women of the Future Awards this year (page 59). They just went ahead and did what they needed to do, despite the people who said they couldn’t. And they succeeded.

It’s a spirit worth celebrating, that hardegat-ness – maybe it’s what will defy international expectations and turn our country around. I know that this Heritage Day, that’s what I’m planning to raise my glass to: good old South African grit.

Have a wonderful month!

Love, Suzy