The Persistent Black Girl

Salome M. Fenyane

Description

This is the story of a little girl who held a dream in her heart for many years. Little did she know that the dream she cherished would be clouded by disadvantage, challenges and failures. As the narrator leads you through the life of Sally, you can see by the ups-and-downs of life how she held onto a dream she had from the tender age of six.
As Sally grew older, she lost hope, found hope, and then finally realized that the dream she had, had to be interpreted into something that she could dedicate her life to. This story is not only about the end, it is about the journey – the journey of life.
Looking back at her life, Sally realizes that all of the heartache and disappointment she experienced in life contributed to the person she is today.
This story serves to inspire and encourage people who have lost hope in themselves and in the future.
The Persistent Black Girl continues in spite of difficulties, opposition and failure in life.

Sujets

• Santé et bien-être
• Développement personnel
• développement personnel
• Self-help
• Inspirational
• Motivational

Informations

• Publié par: Digital On Demand
• Date de parution: 26 novembre 2014
• Nombre de lectures: 2
• EAN13: 9780620998284
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

THE PERSISTENT
BLACK GIRL
“Continues firmly in spite of difficulty, opposition or failure”
Salome M. Fenyane


Salome M. Fenyane
Copyright ©: Salome M. Fenyane
Publisher: Salome M. Fenyane
Web: www.salomefenyane.co.za
Email: [e-mail]
First Print: November 2014
ISBN NR: 978-0-620-61238-8
EISBN NR: 978-0-620-99828-4
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Cover Design and Illustrations: Peter Maphatsoe
Typographical Layout: Liezl Strydom
Editing: Sandra Adams
Printed book - Printing and binding by:
Groep 7 Drukkers en Uitgewers CC Pretoria, www.groep7.co.za [e-mail]
eBook - Print on Demand, Cape Town


Dedication
“The Persistent Black Girl” is dedicated to my father, Abel Mankge and my late mother, Maria; thanks for loving me, and giving me your best. I love you.
A dedication to my daughters, Keneilwe and Boipelo; you gave me a reason to continue living when I thought it was over.
To my one and only baby boy, Letlhogonolo Grantann; thanks for your loving little heart…you are the best baby boy.
And to all of those who contributed to my difficulties, opposition and failures; you helped in pruning “The Persistent Black Girl”.
.


About the Author


Unless Salome mentions it, you would never be able to tell that she is from a family that encountered disadvantages, opposition and failures in life. She also encountered her own share of challenges, but all that inspired her and made her passionate to empower people to live with purpose – irrespective of their challenges.
It does not matter how hopeless your situation seems, she will make sure that you see the positive side of life, using real life experiences; always speaking to your heart.
She is the Author of My Jesus My Role Model, in which she challenges people to let go of their limiting beliefs.
She is the founder of Coaching Divined (Pty) Ltd trading as Divined. Their aim is to help more and more people to live with purpose – irrespective of their disadvantages, challenges and failures in life. She is an Empowering Public Speaker, Coach and Mentor; working with individuals, groups and teams from different sectors of society and business.
A persistent individual, she challenges people to live life to the full by being their best.
For more information, visit www.salomefenyane.co.za


Acknowledgements
All my teachers from Motlhe Primary School, Modilati Middle School, Bokamoso High School, and Promat Correspondence College .
The South African National Defence Union excolleagues; for believing in me when I believed less in myself.
The British High Commission South Africa ex-colleagues, line managers and mentors; for contributing enormously to the Persistent Black Girl’s life and for giving me a chance to take a flight for the first time (thus testing the dream I had as a little girl).
Ms Phinah Masango ; for standing in the gap for me when I ran out of strength to fight my own battle.
Mr Mpumelelo Mkhabela ; for challenging me to open up, and to be ambitious in life.
Mr K.P Seabi ; you helped me win the battle of having my beautiful daughters with me.
Ms Adrie Spies ; you have always been there for me – dankie sussa.
My mentor Ms Ann Grant ; for being herself and being honest with me throughout this journey of my life, and for believing in me.
Mr Andrew Millar ; you believed so much in me and gave me bigger responsibilities that boosted my confidence.
Ms Ann Slavin ; you believed in me as you mentored me through the project management field.
Ms Tokoza Kwinana ; you always give me hope and encouragement.
Mr John Smith ; it was not easy when you pushed me out of my comfort zone but it was all worth it and it contributed enormously to the person that I am today.
My communication mentor Mr Gary Benham ; now I know the importance of the why, how, when, and what.
My designer, Peter Maphatsoe ; for all his efforts in designing the book cover and making the illustrations possible.
My editor, Sandra Adams ; thanks for your passion and encouragement throughout the editing process.
I enjoyed every bit of it.
Preface
“The Persistent Black Girl continues firmly in spite of the difficulty, opposition or failures in her life”
This is the true story of Sally, a black girl born in a family with disadvantages, challenges, opposition and failures. She continued persisting while holding a big dream in her little heart. She had her own disadvantages as well, and failed many times but all these contributed enormously to the person she is today. She is the Persistent Black Girl.
Her dream was inspired at the age of six by the first encounter she had with a pregnant woman. This was the first pregnant women she saw in her life and she was not far from delivering her baby as her tummy was big. With a bit of concern, Sally wanted to know what was going on with this pregnant aunt; that was when she was told that the aunt was going to have a baby. The girl wanted some clarity on the ‘how’ part of it, and she got it all!
Sally was then told that the baby would be delivered through the window by an aeroplane. Little did the granny, who told her this, know that she was arousing a dream in the girl’s little heart. The girl then wanted to be hands-on and involved in the delivery of the baby by making sure that the windows were open. Every night, she would remind the pregnant aunt to open the windows. One night she went to the aunt’s bedroom and opened the windows herself as the aunty took her time to do it.
What perfect timing! That was the night aunty delivered a baby boy. The thought that she had helped with the delivery of the baby boy gave her such joy and fulfilment in her heart. All she wanted to do was to help even more pregnant women to deliver their babies. That was until she heard the sound of an aeroplane as she stood by the door of her parent’s shack, looking at it as it vanished in the sky. She became very concerned about the person flying the aeroplane and wondered what would happen if he missed the window. That was when the Persistent Black Girl felt in her heart that she needed to be the one flying the aeroplane, thereby making sure that the babies were safely delivered to the pregnant women.
All became possible; nothing was going to stop her, including the cousin-brother who never believed in her dream. She was going to make it; the disadvantages, challenges or failures of her parents were not going to stop her. So she believed, until she started making sense of her own disadvantages, challenges and failures, as well as those she adopted from the community and her own parents. The dream she once cherished haunted her and brought her more pain than the joy she expected.
As Sally grew up she realised that the babies that were born were not delivered by an aeroplane as she was once made to believe. “I had all the reasons to let go of my dream, and it was best to leave it as a dream – that was where it belonged after all,” said the Persistent Black Girl. I guess the world showed her a lot more impossibilities than possibilities.
With a shattered dream she continued persisting through the challenges and failures, not knowing that the dream that never made sense would later make a lot of sense; she would be living her dream. Then, at the age of thirty-seven the dream that she first had at the age of six became her life purpose, and she was, and is still is, living it, thriving, persisting and learning to become a better person – notwithstanding the disadvantages, challenges and failures that still come her way.
She is: The Persistent Black Girl.


The Persistent Black Girl
She continues persisting firmly in spite of difficulties, opposition and failures … and it is in her heart to motivate, inspire and encourage even more people to do the same.
Monday, 09th May 1977
The Persistent Black Girl was Born


Contents
Dedication
About the Author
Acknowledgements
Preface
CHAPTER 1
The Black Girl is Born
CHAPTER 2
The Real World
CHAPTER 3
Dream
CHAPTER 4
Dream Shaken
CHAPTER 5
Companion
CHAPTER 6
Loss
CHAPTER 7
The Girl’s New Home
CHAPTER 8
First Love
CHAPTER 9
Broken Heart
CHAPTER 10
Let Go
Love
CHAPTER 12
Goodbye
CHAPTER 13
Death and Life
CHAPTER 14
The Black Girl is Hiding
CHAPTER 15
Hope
CHAPTER 16
Battles
CHAPTER 17
Living with Purpose


CHAPTER 1
The Black Girl is Born
“Born in a family that had its own difficulties, opposition and failures”
A young girl was born in the North and lived most of her life with one of her brothers after her mother passed away while she was very young. She kept saying, “I can’t even remember my mother’s face.” This really tells a story on its own. As she grew older (probably in her early twenties), she decided to face the world – by herself. She then ended up in Johannesburg, working as a domestic worker.
For her this was an achievement, she could start dreaming and being the lady she always dreamt about being. As beautiful as she was, and new to Johannesburg, she attracted few African men. At that moment she had to make a choice; I guess she followed her heart. So she ended up in the hands of an attractive man – he was really handsome.

He also had a story to tell and he had the same Northern background like her. Both his parents had passed away, and worse, he faced the pre-