{"id":9136,"date":"2015-09-20T22:32:16","date_gmt":"2015-09-20T20:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/responsive.jozikids.co.za\/zaparents\/?p=9136"},"modified":"2022-06-21T13:03:32","modified_gmt":"2022-06-21T11:03:32","slug":"what-it-means-to-me-to-be-south-african","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jozikids.co.za\/blog\/lifestyle\/culture\/what-it-means-to-me-to-be-south-african\/","title":{"rendered":"What it means (to me) to be South African"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hoo boy, this topic is a toughie. I dithered and contemplated. Internally debated and outwardly frowned. How do you sum up something that\u2019s part of your heart and<\/em> your heartbreak? I figured a list would work. And I stopped when I got to 20 items.<\/p>\n

Happy Heritage Day, South Africans.<\/p>\n

To me, being South African means\u2026<\/h2>\n

1. Cursing the Sandton traffic and praising the neon sunset, in the same breath
\n2. Having no interest in any sport, unless one of our national teams is playing
\n3. Outdoor washing lines
\n4. Admiring my nation, while disparaging my government
\n5. Drinking Joburg water
\n6. A constitution that safeguards the rights of same-sex couples to marry and parent
\n7. Teaching my child to speak Zulu and English
\n8. Generously tipping petrol attendants, waiters, car guards and those whose struggles we can\u2019t imagine
\n9. Loving the bush as passionately as dung beetles love\u2026 well, dung
\n10. Being inordinately proud of the Gautrain
\n11. Dreaming of a better public education system, a better public healthcare system, better roads, better police and better infrastructure
\n12. Having a second family living alongside us, that loves and looks after my child while making our home life cleaner, safer, easier and better
\n13. Moaning about load shedding and e-tolling, until I\u2019m conversing with a formerly South African Australian. At which point, South Africa becomes paradise.
\n14. Loving, with equal intensity, the music of Kurt Darren and Judith Sephuma
\n15. Raising a child who defines people\u2019s colour by \u2018pink\u2019, beige\u2019, \u2018dark beige\u2019, \u2018light brown\u2019 and \u2018dark brown\u2019 \u2013 not by White, Black, Indian, Asian or Coloured
\n16. Making jokes about sensitive issues, when it\u2019s far too soon to be appropriate
\n17. Drinking red wine; eating red meat; gossiping about white shirts and red berets
\n18. Using Afrikaans to keep secrets from small children and large Americans
\n19. Taking a personal stand against bribing traffic cops and civil servants
\n20. Having public holidays, Jewish holidays and ultra-long December holidays<\/p>\n

\"South
Photo by Den Harrson on Unsplash<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This article was originally written for Jozikids by Tiffany Markman in 2015.<\/em><\/p>\n

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