Wow. Finally... I remember practicing this  song in the Band the Room. well done brother. proud of you.

Mama

This song was inspired by ”Joost Van Der Westhuizen’s Story”, a movie I had seen a few days before. I sat in awe throughout, wondering how such an extraordinary human being could have gone undetected… if by me then probably by most people. I guess it’s Apartheid’s curse that anyone remotely associated with the “volk” was inadvertently written-off as a cruel, racist monster.

What struck me most about this modest sportsman was his unflagging consistency. As the “wunderkind” of rugby he was a specimen athlete of the highest calibre, fearlessly putting his nuts on the line for the glory of “King & Country”. Now afflicted with MND(Motor Neuron Disease), his frail, pathetic body at the mercy of an unforgiving malady, he continues to charm & impress with a character & cheery outlook that could put the best of us to shame.

What incredible courage in the face of adversity?!? Sure… he probably doesn’t have the ladies queuing-up for his affections anymore, but in the absence of glory there’s always an uncanny shortage of glory-seekers. Still… his spirit continues to rise to the challenges thrown his way long after the applause died & the trophies tarnished.

Clearly, he was not about glitz & glamour. He was & insists on being a real hero. A blonde, blue-eyed, golden son of South Africa… he must have the heart of a lion & the balls of an elephant! Alas, they don’t make ‘em like that anymore.

His words, “Why NOT me?” in a moment of reflection, haunted me for days afterwards, which is probably what sparked-off the song. It was only 3 or 4 days after I’d written a spontaneous draft that I realized where it had come from, only to find out just a few days later of the impending Rugby World Cup. I was truly astonished at the apparent synchronicity that was emerging. I suppose the release of the movie was well-timed by the distributors(lol). It certainly had me going!

From there, it escalated into almost a compulsion… a “mission” to put out this song, not only to honour the many Joosts out there, but also to make peace with myself, considering how deftly & thoughtlessly I had erased all Afrikaners, especially rugby players, from my universe. Growing up in the hell of Apartheid, I perceived them to be the cream of that regime, flaunting their White “superiority” with so much pride like it was their birthright. There are a few things scarier in the world than insane people who are proud of themselves!

Now, all these years later, I realize that I might’ve thrown the baby out with the bath water. And Joost is a rather large baby… (lol)! That said, I believe this song has the power to galvanize all South Africans, especially the Bokke, to bring home that elusive 3rd triumph. Eishhh… I can almost taste victory!

Go Bokke… fokken’ bliksem hulle!!!

UPDATE(05/12/2015): Well… the Rugby World Cup has come & gone. We’ll bliksem them next time… no problem! In the meantime, I thought it would be an awful waste of a great song(in my opinion, anyway) if it all had to end there, so I decided to rewrite some of the lyrics so the song still captures the spirit of Joost but as an inspirational song.

An imperative for the rest of us to take the bull by the horns, live our lives to the full, but mostly to deliver our country out of the muck & swamp of apathy into an era of sparkling ingenuity & explosive achievement that echoes the voices of phenomenal South African leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Steve Biko, Beyers Naude & the unforgettable Nelson Mandela, who died whilst trying to show us the way. Their most endearing quality has to be their sincerity; not one of them was concerned with self-enrichment or personal glory.

With such leaders carving-out a path in their own blood, sweat & tears for us to follow & further expand, isn’t it a crying shame that we’re now in the grip of economic turmoil & political uncertainty? But hey, that’s my humble opinion. Go ahead & have yours… you’re entitled to it!

℗© 2016 Moss. All rights reserved. Used by Permission.

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Mama

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