T h e C l e a n e st city in Africa Page 21
Vol. 1 Issue 26 16th OCTOBER 2020
Esther
Osemwegie
Our Modern Day
Mary Seacole In collaboration with
Ug
Independ
Uganda Wins Independence (1962)
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Fly over Africa: The Republic of Uganda
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anda 58 th
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Uganda 58th Independence Celebrations
Why Uganda?
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Uganda is one of the world’s most biodiverse countries: home to 13 types of primates and 330 mammals, of which six are found nowhere else, as well as more than 1000 bird species, it also encompasses a startling range of landscapes, from Africa’s highest mountain range and the source of the Nile – the world’s longest river – to the continent’s largest lake. 3
In Loving Memory
M
By Beverley Cooper-Chambers
y father died on 5th October 2020, in Jamaica, after a brief illness. It was poignant because I had just remembered my mother’s passing on the 1st October 1984 and was quietly contemplating that on the 5th October, 41 years ago, one of my daughters, Leann had died. Death is inevitable but when it happens it doesn’t get easier to accept. COVID 19 has made it even harder. COVID 19 has introduced a new concept to grief. How to grieve alone? In the UK, the news spread about my father’s passing and the phone did not stop ringing. Everybody is sorry and sends their condolences and offers support but the days and the nights went by – but nobody comes. You desperately want a hug, you want to cry but you can’t because there are things to be done – ordinary things, like paying the bills, topping up the meter, eating, doing the laundry, and in my case, getting the next issue of Butterfly Maag out. In addition there’s the zoom calls with siblings around the world to make funeral arrangements curtailed because of COVID regulations. For health reasons I was not going to fly out to Jamaica. It was then I missed how we celebrate the passing of a loved one in Jamaica.
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Nine Nights and The Jamaican Celebration of Death 4
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As the news spreads that someone has died, the house fills with people from near and far. The men congregate in the yard or on the verandah playing dominoes, drinking rum, and reminiscing. The aroma that fills the house is evidence of the women in the kitchen cooking up a storm. There is music playing, elders are singing hymns and offering prayers and every now and again someone cries a whole community united in grief and driven by compassion and days sometimes week of free food. All of this leads up to the nine nights.
Nine Nights – Caribbean funeral traditions in the UK
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SOFT & TASTY
Dhalpuri Roti (dhal puri roti)
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Esther Osemwegie
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Contents Cover: Esther Osemwegie Credit: Contributed
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Covid - 19
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Uganda 58th Independence Celebrations
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What’s on the Screen?
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Ask Valerie
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The Day My Father Died
37 38 Fashion
Laughter
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Freedom is Mine with Fayida
THE BUTTERFLY MAAG TEAM Editor-in-Chief Beverley Cooper-Chambers EDITORIAL TEAM Karen Ferrari Simone Scott-Sawyer Editorial Researcher Tasina J. Lewis Editorial Assistant Melissa Osborne Marketing Team Marvin Osemwegie — Marketing Director Michael Brown — Social Media Analyst Financial Strategic Advisor Nastassia Hedge-Whyte, MAAT, ACCA,ICAJ Regular Features Sports Arrow (London) Fayida Jailler (UK) Chi-Chi Osemwegie (London) Design Editor Rusdi Saleh Graphics Butterfly logo by Wayne Powell (Jamaica)
ENJOY READING & WATCHING BUTTERFLY MAAG ON YOUR SMARTPHONE Submit a story: communications@butterflymaag.com
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Sports Arrow
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Food
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The Library 6
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Butterfly magazine is published weekly by BUTTERFLY MAGAZINE LIMITED, 86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE, UK. Tel: (44) (0) 203 984 9419 Butterfly ™ 2015 is the registered trademark of THE LION AND THE LAMB MEDIA HOUSE.
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The Disruptor
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Anguilla
41 44 Hope
Last Word
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without written permission from the publishers BUTTERFLY MAGAZINE LIMITED. Advertising enquiries: communications@butterflymaag.com Address all correspondence to: communications@butterflymaag.com No copyright infringement is intended
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THE LIBRARY
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Enslaved with Samuel L Jackson
Wilma
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Growing up in Nazi Germany – Esther Anumu Fordham Esther Fordham was a Black woman who, born October 9, 1925 in Hamburg, Germany, came of age during the Nazi era. In this December, 1995 conversation with artist Frank Fitzgerald, Esther discusses her youth, schooling and the reaction of classmates and adult Germans to her specialness. As world conditions darken and war grows to become the norm, she finds discrimination, fear, sorrow and horror, but also generosity and hope. After the bombings cease, amid the rubble Esther meets and marries an American soldier. Giving birth in an Army hospital, she wonders why she has a whole maternity ward to herself. Later, living in America, she slowly learns about prejudice, segregation and lynchings. Throughout all, Esther Anumu Fordham strives to see “people as human beings” and succeeds. In 1997, after having raised a family and worked 20+ years for an airline, Esther retired and returned to Germany. She lived to be 94 years old. Family photographs courtesy of Esther Fordham and Dominique Seidler Warias.
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Hans Massaquoi: Growing up Black in Nazi Germany When you think of Nazi Germany, you mostly think about the human rights abuses, and the concentration camps like Auschwitz. But have you ever wondered what happened to the black people living under the Third Reich? It turns out that even though there were racial laws demanding the extermination of the Jewish and Roma people, there were so few Africans living in Germany, that they were not considered to be one of Hitler’s main priorities. One very special mixed race boy grew up in Germany during the Third Reich, and he lived to tell the tale. Not only did he manage to survive unscathed, but he also desperately wanted to join the Nazi Party. He was an actual prince, and he grew up to become a writer. This is the incredible story of Hans Massaquoi. Transform your viewing...
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What’s on the Screen?
The Screeners’
TV Choice
Illustration by Wayne Powell (Jamaica)
WELCOME TO THE VIRTUAL LIBRARY
Welcome to our Virtual Library ! Feel free to browse around and choose any book to read, all you have to do is click on the book cover to get the link. Enjoy!
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Phylicia Rashad On TV Motherhood, Mentoring Chadwick Boseman, HBCUs, Dynamic Acting
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A Black Lady Sketch Show: Get the Belt (Full Sketch)
The Black Lady Sketch Show: Get the Belt A Black Lady Sketch Show is a narrative series set in a limitless magical reality full of dynamic, hilarious characters and celebrity guests. The show presents sketches performed by a core cast of black women, including Robin Thede, Ashley Nicole Black, Quinta Brunson, and Gabrielle Dennis.
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Dr. Joy Harden Bradford On ‘Therapy For Black Girls’ Podcast, Finding The Right Therapist
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ASK VALERIE I really don’t want to change who I am, but I’m told that my attitude is driving manly men away. I’m often told they find me challenging, what can I do without compromising myself. — Linda I love this question as it serves to help women rediscover their feminine energy, which in this day and age seems to be slipping away as women become more in their ‘masculine Feminine energy is soft, warm, nurturing, compelling, mysterious, receiving, calm and strong. It’s energy that flows from ‘feeling’ energy, as opposed to ‘thinking’, which is masculine energy. When a woman is in her ‘mind’ she can be competitive and wanting control. This is what masculine men describe as ‘challenging’. He feels he cannot relax in her presence as the energy she emanates, calls for his need to ‘compete’. It’s like he’s with another man. It’s important to note masculine and feminine energy are not gender specific. Even in same sex relationships you will see these 2 energies at play. As individuals we have both these energies and we switch between the both accordingly. For example at work in a leadership role a woman may find herself more in her masculine to ensure deadlines are met. The problem occurs when she transfers this energy from the boardroom to the bedroom. Now Linda, you’ve got to drop being competitive with a man especially as you are wanting his masculine. You can express what you have to say in a warm and soft way without coming
across as challenging. Practise being a safe haven for a man and ‘receive’ him with open and relaxing energy particularly after a competitive day at work. Here are a few tips to express your feminine - wear dresses, soft fabrics - even if you like trousers team, it with something like a chiffon blouse. Is your hygiene on point? Do you smell good? Skin soft? Wear a great smile? Do you allow him to take the lead? Do you make him feel needed - like following through on a piece of advice he’s given you? Are you vulnerable with your guy? Do you express appreciation for his efforts, do you allow him to pursue you? These are a few questions for you to ponder on. To learn more click https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=jC1Kg4XWQf4&feature=emb_logo AND check out the ‘the 10 biggest mistakes women make’ in my book She’s Got That Vibe. https://valerieacampbell.com/the-book/
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Freedom is Mine
Spain
BY FAYIDA JAILLER
F
or 800 years Spain was under AfricanMuslim rule, beginning in 711 when the Umayyad Caliphate expanded into the Iberian Peninsula. This lasted until 1492 when Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in the Iberian Peninsula, came under Spanish, Christian rule. A well-known example of an early prominent black figure in Spain is Ziryab. Ziryab was renowned musician and scholar who lived in Andalucía in the 8th century. Originally born in 789 AD in Iraq to parents of African descent, Ziryab eventually settled in Spain, and his reputation was so great that he was invited by King al-Hakam to Cordoba. He received accommodation in the royal courts and went on to enjoy an illustrious musical career. He is widely considered the godfather of Andalusian music. There is also a long history of slavery in the Spanish empire. In 1492, Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer funded by the Spanish monarchy, reached the island of ge wled Hispaniola, the Kno Of r Elixi by Ziryab island shared by modern-day Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and established the first Spanish colony in the New World. Incidentally, he was accompanied by African conquistador Juan Garrido who was one of the earliest Africans to reach the Americas. The Spanish went onto conquer much of Latin America and enlisted an enslaved African workforce across the continent which contributed untold wealth to the Spanish Crown.
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Moors in Spain Visio n Times
Juan Garrido by Diario Público
Juan de Pareja by Diego Velázquez 1650
One example of a well know enslaved African in Spain Juan de Pareja, a 17th century Afro-Spanish painter and assistant to celebrated painter Diego Velazquez. Velazquez eventually freed Juan in 1654, and Juan worked as an independent painter in Madrid. During the 18th and 19th centuries, there is evidence to show that Spain may have had the largest African population in Europe, particularly in Cadiz. Yet in the years following the population largely disappeared. Some historians alleged that due to racist attitudes and limited job opportunities in 19th century Spain, many Africans and their descendants either returned to Africa or migrated to Hispanic countries in Latin America. Nowadays, there continues to be an African presence in Spain, particularly from Morocco and Equatorial Guinea. There is an annual festival in Madrid called Conciencia Afro. It takes place in September, and celebrates Afrodescendant culture in Spain.
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Welcome to the Disruptor
To be a disruptor in business is to create a product, service, or way of doing things which displaces the existing market leaders and eventually replaces them at the helm of the sector. [`the disruptor]
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Less Talk More Action
The Teen Designing Eswatini’s Traditional Regalia
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Uganda’s trade landscape? 22
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What lies ahead for
Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner Two Generations of An American Black Inventor Family
JN Bank Launches the Caribbean First Full Service Bank in London, UK
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Enough is
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Anguilla
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7 Facts about Anguilla
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lead Story
Esther Osemwegie
Our Modern Day
Mary Seacole
By Simone Scott-Sawyer
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I
ntroduction – Esther Osemwegie is one of those formidable females whose jovial personality belies the unsung heroine qualities that she possesses. Can you imagine going out to battle each time you went into the office, often without the armour you need to keep you alive, yet out of duty and a sense of purpose, you are driven to keep going? Since when did going to work, not only risk your life, but also the lives of your family and friends? This has been Esther’s reality throughout the pandemic and this article gives a small insight into the raw, ugly face of COVID. Esther has also written a book titled “Called for such a time as this” which gives a firsthand account of the life of a frontline NHS COVID worker. She is resilient as she is resourceful, fearless as she is faith-led. An enlightening and inspiring interview.
BM - Who is Esther and how long have you lived in the UK?
I have lived in the UK since December 1989, am married with four children and six grandchildren. After a spell working as a cleaner, caterer, health care assistant, I started studying for my nursing degree at the University of Greenwich in 2000.
BM – Why did you choose nursing as a career?
This goes back to my purpose as I have always had a desire to help people, hence my stint in the health care industry. I recall the suffering resulting from the 1998 Kenyan floods, and seeing people from other races helping the African people further ignited a strong need in me to help. To be able to make a real impact, a professional qualification was needed, hence my choice of nursing career. When I started my research for the book I wrote recently, I discovered that Diabetes is a big issue which causes lots of health complications. I therefore decided to research Diabetes and started a Master’s degree course on the condition this month. Health coaching is a past-time of mine and together with my nursing skills I would like to educate people on how to prevent and manage the condition. The incidences of Diabetes is increasing and some of the reasons for the increase in cases is lifestyle: diet and obesity. The condition can also be hereditary. Those born with Diabetes are categorised as Type 1 – the body attacks the pancreas which means it cannot make insulin. Those who develop the illness at some point in their life are categorised as Type 2 – the body is unable to make enough insulin or the insulin it makes is of poor
Esther and her brother
Esther with Victor, her husband. quality. Diabetes patients have a greater propensity to suffer a stroke and when diagnosed with other illnesses, it can cause a number of complications. There is no cure to date and it can only be managed with medication.
What makes you upset?
Injustice! As a child, I once got into a fight with the King’s son. In Nigeria, each village has a royal family who reign over that region. The royal family is highly revered and it is therefore frowned upon for anyone to dare stand up to the King’s son, let alone fight him. As a result I was beaten by my teacher and consequently beaten by my parents too. These incidents haunted me as a child for many years and left me traumatised as I felt I was wronged and owed an apology. Many years later as an adult, I travelled back to Nigeria, to Ubulu-Ukwu town and somehow found a way of making contact with the King’s son. A meeting was arranged where I recounted the incident to him, we eventually reconciled and he apologised. I achieved this despite being dissuaded by all that this venture was a waste of my time. We went on to discuss me working with the youths and this was the genesis of “Youth Dynamic”, a training course I devised for the youths. I taught them an invaluable skill for life, to remain respectful to their parents, set their own goals and remain true to their authentic selves at same time. At the end of a 4 day intensive course, I gave each of the 145 tearful students a 45 page booklet which was akin to a manual for life.
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When BM last spoke to you in May, one of your concerns was the emotional and mental well-being of your COVID patients. Since then, what have been the main challenges you have experienced as COVID nurse at the height of the pandemic?
The lack of adequate personal protective equipment [PPE] and not being able to self-isolate. There was no limit placed on the time spent with patients as it depended on what each patient presented with. Back in May I also spoke about my struggles with maintaining a strict hair hygiene, COVID style and my decision to shave off all my hair to make myself as COVID-resistant as possible. There were days when it felt like the virus hung in the air and clung onto every part of your body. I would get home late at night and proceed to thoroughly cleanse myself from my head to toe. Grooming my hair to make it decent for work the following day would take an inordinate amount of time, meaning I would scarcely have enough time to rest before rising again for work to do it all over again. What was worse however, was the day I discovered a mask with an altered expiry date from 2016 to 2021! This was perturbing and caused me to question everything - could this be one of the reasons why the deaths of frontline staff was unusually high? My faith in
Esther studies hard at boarding school 28
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At home in Port Harcourt
my employers was rocked to the core and I felt let down. I also began to question the ritualistic clapping on a Thursday as it began to feel meaningless. As a freelancer, when the COVID numbers started to dwindle the roles started to disappear and I was left with no income. I had risked my life on the front line, then suddenly I was left without a job. I happened to fall outside the protection ring afforded by the Furlough rules and this was a tough time for my family and I.
pandemic. Folks need to go out to sell their wares, yet the rates of deaths are still lower. There is something rather curious about this fact. Coming home after such emotionally charged days where my life was constantly at risk, was nervewracking and I did not want to express fear to my family. My daughter sometimes suffered panic attacks and my husband’s weight plummeted from all the stress. I prayed that I was not putting my family at risk, but despite that, I pressed on.
So how did you cope?
Despite the horror stories I had to trust in God ultimately and concluded that He would protect me. The fear therefore left as faith became my focus. I drew strength from my higher self to keep propelling myself forward.
So what is the situation regarding black people and COVID: are they more susceptible to the virus?
A lot of healthcare professionals tend to be people of colour. What we see in mainstream media does NOT depict this. The real frontline workers such as the cleaners, health-care workers and nurses tend to be black people - like soldiers who go to war, they tend to die more. For instance, one of the front-line consultants who was from an ethnic minority group was admitted on my ward with suspected COVID and a few weeks later was dead. This was a jarring experience. Shortly after that, another colleague of mine also from an ethnic minority group, contracted COVID, went into ITU and shortly afterwards passed away. I would go to the bathroom, cry, pray and then head back to the ward and carry on working. On a slightly more analytical note: we know COVID attacks the immune system – nurses are generally burnt out, over-worked and tend to suffer with conditions like high blood pressure. Despite this, they carry on working in their compromised state. In my experience, nurses usually have very high blood pressure and therefore tend to be more at risk. Historically, most Black people who gravitate towards to the nursing profession, also tend to live in deprived areas and stressful conditions, making them more vulnerable. Yet the overall rates of death of those living in Africa tend to be much lower. There is hardly any social isolation in those parts of the world, because survival instincts kick in regardless of a
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What is your take on COVID vaccinations?
Generally, I struggle to find people willing to take vaccines, as even the flu vaccine causes apprehension. I believe it is too short a period to conduct trials and sufficient experiments to know of any real side effects of the vaccine, which can sometimes take months or years to manifest. Furthermore, the micro-chip system being proposed is also of concern as we simply do not have enough information about this. It is believed that this system could allow an electronic implant to be inserted under the human skin allowing the state to track the movements of its citizens. So I will not deter people from taking the vaccinations, but where my family and I are concerned, we will wait and see.
Relaxing at boarding school
What sowed the seeds for you to write a book?
My book “Called for such a time as this� was not a gradual process. Once COVID incidences started to dwindle, we had clean wards [with COVID-free patients] and dirty wards [with COVID patients]. On the 12th March 2020, I started talking to a patient who was crying because she was missing her dog. She was partially blind and her mother had previously died of COVID in a nursing home. She had also developed incontinence as a result of COVID. When I relayed my concerns about her to my colleagues, I was dismissed. Instinctively knowing there was more to her story, I decided to find out more from the patient and why she was missing her dog. She described an instance when she had fallen ill at home and had it not been for her dog barking and alerting her neighbours, things could have been much worse. I then had the idea to begin documenting her account and write it down. I did the same with the next patient, a cleaner who had not seen her husband for 6 weeks, was bedridden, plagued by bed sores and
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Credit: PH Drones
had incontinence [bowels and bladder] as a result of COVID. This had also caused cognitive impairment and poor mobility: the list of issues is endless and I talk about these and the need for rehabilitation in my book. I spoke to another patient considered suicidal. Again, I suspected there was more to her story and discovered that she had recently lost her fiancé to COVID and therefore felt she had nothing to live for. She was a heavy smoker and as a suicide risk patient, needed to be accompanied whenever she wished to go out to smoke and no one wanted this job I found colleagues to be unsympathetic, so I kept her company. I told a few patients that I was writing a book and found them very gracious in sharing their stories with me. The emotional turmoil was extraordinary, but I had to continue writing I guess being able to document these stories in a book was my form of therapy. The patient with the dog sparked off the idea and I completed the book in 6 weeks. Once I encountered a gentleman as I boarded the train at Waterloo East station and heard a voice saying ‘go to the other carriage I am about to smoke’. I did not want to show fear but before I could disembark to find another carriage, the doors closed. Though I was reluctant to engage him in conversation, I reminded him it was illegal to smoke on board a train. He then told me he had just lost his dad to COVID. I found myself being repeatedly reminded that it was not my place to judge. Who was I to decide in that moment that this passenger could not smoke?
The hustle and bustle of Port Harcourt
Going forward, what issues concern you?
I cared for a 45 year old gravely ill gentleman in ITU for a long period of time. He could not mobilise and would helplessly fall back onto his bed every time he tried to stand up, sweating profusely. This was partly due to anxiety, double incontinence [bowels and bladder] and cognitive impairment. Other patients I encountered suffered such horrific side effects from COVID that they could no longer go home but had to be placed in Care homes – this accounts for approximately 4% of COVID sufferers. My concern is that such patients simply cannot be sent home to fend for themselves. It is quite evident therefore that a tailor-made, after-care service is urgently needed for COVID recovery patients. There was another instance, where I cared for a patient being admitted to hospital with his wife who she succumbed to COVID shortly after admission and died. Upon being discharged home, I learnt that he had no food or indeed anyone at home. I quickly gathered food from the kitchen for him and discharged him with a packed lunch and a heavy heart. Because he was to all intents and purposes, capable of feeding himself and washing himself there was no need for input from social services. However he clearly had needs but was effectively was left to his own devices. This gentleman was one of many, slipping through the cracks of an NHS system which was supposedly meant to care for him. I also wonder about those whose family members die in hospital as a result of COVID, left to their own devices to just carry on with life. What about the emotional, psychological and mental support needed? Transform your viewing...
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My parting thought is that neighbours need to be good neighbours. Families need to care more for relatives, even if it is a quick phone call to enquire about their well-being – be curious and ask how they are feeling that day, if they have eaten. Can you assist with their shopping, collection of prescription medication? Cook for them. Pray with them. There is a wonderful community-care-focused service run by my church called TOUCH: together our unity creates healing, which can cater for all of the above needs and more. The team can be reached at: www.icancommunitychurch.com. In essence we each need to be our brother’s keeper and make a difference with those things that are within our control.
Finally, how can readers get hold of your book?
They can purchase a copy at Amazon. Called For Such A Time As This: The Account Of A Frontline COVID-19 Nurse.
THE MARY SEACOLE TRUST
He Turned it
Here’s the Shalom Chorale, winners of the BBC Gospel Choir of the Year 2018 singing ‘He turned it’ by Tye Tribbett at the second episode of the BBC Songs of Praise Gospel Choir of the Year 2018 competition. As you watch, we pray that God will turn any unpleasant situation in your life around for the best, and make His light shine on your path. Credit: BGT/Anthony Ying
Shalom Chorale @ BBC Songs of Praise Gospel Choir of the year 2018
Credit: Shalom Chorale
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Britain’s Got Talent 2020 St. Anne’s Gospel Choir Full Audition
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Covid - 19 as a parable of our time is provoking us to think critically about what truly matters in life, relationships, the environment, God.
H
umanity, forced into a global retreat is learning: to be still, to listen, to think seriously. Thinking seriously we become aware of things. Things forgotten, things lost, things spiritual. We think of stories to help us heal, to help us decipher Covid-19. I share the stories that emerged from my thoughts.
The first was an African story layered in wisdom. Once upon a time, in a penthouse on the roof of a Chief’s hut, lived a rat. One day the rat saw a man setting a trap on the boundary of the village. The rat was troubled, thinking it was a bad place to set a trap. When the man had finished setting the trap, the rat ran hastily down to break it but failed. The rat had a bad feeling that trouble was brewing because of the trap. The rat then saw a chicken coming along and ran to it. The rat breathlessly told the chicken his apprehension about the trap and pleaded with the chicken to break it. The chicken thought the rat was crazy and refused to break the trap. The rat pleaded fervently with the chicken, saying the trap was in a bad place and would get everybody into trouble. The chicken said that it didn’t care, the trap was not made for it or the rat and therefore they should not be bothered about it. But the rat pleaded with the chicken to care. The chicken did not care and went on with its business. The rat was devastated but then saw a goat coming along. The rat thought, great, the goat is bigger than the chicken and can easily break the trap. The rat told the goat its concern and pleaded with it to break the trap into smithereens.
The goat thought the rat was crazy and said that he was busy and had no time for breaking traps. And like the chicken, it didn’t care either. The rat pleaded for the goat to care. Unconcerned, the goat left to get on with its business. The rat was hysterical and overwhelmed with a sense of foreboding, when along came a cow. The rat said to the cow, ‘Please, please, listen! The chicken and the goat say that they don’t care!’ The cow said, ‘What are you talking about, care about what? ‘ The rat said, ‘That trap over there, we are all going to be in serious trouble because of it. Please go and break it.’ The cow responded, ‘Rat, you know what? Sometimes you should listen to other people. They tell you they don’t care, take it like that they don’t care, and you want me to care.’ Why? I am a cow! I am big, that thing can’t harm me.’ The rat interjected, ‘No, no, we are all going to be in serious trouble.’ ‘How?’ asked the cow, and said, ‘It’s nonsense, I don’t care either.’ And off went the cow about its business. Frustrated, the rat wondered what to do. As he was thinking, a big snake came slithering from some place, and taking a shortcut went straight to where the trap was and got caught by its tail. Furiously, it struggled to get out but to no avail. At that moment the Chief of the village came along walking to his Royal Palace. Unaware, he walked straight to where the deadly snake caught in the trap was struggling to escape and he got bitten. The Chief screamed, ‘I have been bitten!’ The villagers came running from everywhere saying, ‘What’s up?’ The Chief said, ‘I have been bitten. It’s a snake!’ The villagers saw the snake and killed it.
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Angry, the villagers wanted to know who set the trap. Of course they couldn’t concentrate on that now as they had to treat the Chief who had been bitten by the snake. They took the Chief to his Palace, and shortly afterwards he died. Funeral arrangements commenced as the sun set. People in the village began gathering at the Chief’s Palace. The elders ordered a meal to be prepared and, as there were few people, thought the chicken would suffice. So the chicken was slaughtered. The rat exclaimed, ‘Aha! You see, I said that this trap would be trouble. Look now the chicken is dead. He said that he didn’t care. Now he is dead!’ Morning came and people from other villages arrived. As there were now more people for lunch, the goat was next. So the goat was slaughtered. The rat exclaimed, ‘Aha! You see. The goat said he did not care, now look, he is a goner. I told them this trap was going to get us all into serious trouble. The chicken is dead. The goat is dead.’ Evening came. Other Chiefs turned up. And on the menu for dinner was the cow! So the cow was slaughtered. The rat exclaimed, ‘Aha! You see what has happened? They all asked how this trap was going to affect us?’ The chicken is dead. The goat is dead. The cow is dead.
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They are all dead. And all said that they didn’t care! I told them to care! The Chief was buried the next day. After a Chief’s burial it is customary that his hut is burnt. So the Chief’s hut was set on fire. And the rat in its penthouse died in the inferno. The chicken, the goat, the cow, all didn’t care! The rat insisted they should care. Their lack of care and concern had deadly consequences.
The Rt. Revd. Dr. Musonda Trevor Selwyn Mwamba is a lawyer and former banker and was educated in Zambia, America, and England. He trained for the priesthood at St. Stephen’s House, Oxford.
Fashion
T
he holiday season is upon us – here is JANET + GEORGE’s list of Top 10 African Fashion Designers to Watch 2020 – as Africa continues to reclaim its position around the globe, both economically and socially, in many sectors. One of the sectors the continent has reclaimed is the fashion industry which has proven to be moving faster than any other industry. Fashion designers in Africa, both emerging and established, have proved to the world the potential of African creativity in African fashion design. Aside from using the traditional African print fabrics to create designs, African designers are also incorporating fabrics from across the globe to come up with captivating designs. African Fashion designers on the continent, determined to push the boundaries further, took African ingenuity to new heights, by creating collections that speak for itself, catching the attention of global influencers, celebrities, and industry leaders. Many African designers are featured in renowned top publications such as Vogue, Forbes magazine, and CNN Style. Slowly but steadily, the world continues to watch the new crop of fashion design talents emerging from Africa. Continue to read on to discover who made the JANET + GEORGE list of Top 10 African Designers To Watch 2020. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Imane Ayissi Thebe Magugu Sarah Diouf Sindiso Khumalo Dumebi Iyamah Kassim Lassissi Adebayo Oke-Lawal Kenneth Ize Anifa Mvuemba Katungulu Mwendwa Transform your viewing...
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Relax
LAUGHTER GOOD FOR THE SOUL
How to peel a pineapple with your hands
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This is basic
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Credit:VICE
Sports Arrow
How Michael Jordan Changed Sneaker Culture Forever/One Man and His Shoes
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HOPE
THE UK EASES
BACK TO LOCKDOWN
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HOPE
A Prayer
There is always hope
Lord, Comfort Us, Heal Us, Protect Us, Guide Us, Provide for Us and most of all Forgive Us. In the name of Jesus, Amen. Places Reporting Cases Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Congo Cote dIvoire Democratic Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Eswatini Ethiopia Gabon Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea Bissau Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia
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Africa Sum of Cases
Sum of Deaths
Confirmed cases in the last 14 days
53399 1818 6488 219 2411 41 5039 20 2305 63 529 1 21333 423 7254 77 4855 62 1321 92 5156 92 20183 120 10871 275 5428 61 104787 6071 5066 83 414 0 5696 114 85718 1305 8860 54 3636 118 47126 310 11134 70 2385 40 41937 787 1805 42 1371 82 44985 656 16754 237 5827 181 3296 132 7554 163 407 10 156946 2685 10258 73 12000 129
2031 1583 71 1867 273 23 495 1354 30 128 67 514 241 12 1708 36 39 234 11134 108 57 644 500 61 3559 229 28 10971 377 55 206 80 26 35763 1702 860
Places Reporting Cases
Sum of Cases
Niger Nigeria Rwanda Sao Tome and Principe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sudan Togo Tunisia Uganda United Republic of Tanzania Western Sahara Zambia Zimbabwe
Confirmed cases in the last 14 days
1203 69 60655 1116 4908 32 929 15 15307 315 148 0 2309 72 3864 99 694537 18028 2798 55 13691 836 1972 50 32556 478 9945 95 509 21 766 1 15587 345 8036 230
Caribbean Places Reporting Cases
Sum of Deaths
7 2008 72 18 362 5 87 276 21965 98 85 213 15151 1928 0 0 872 199
COVID-19 situation update worldwide, as of 15 October 2020 Sum of Cases
Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Aruba Bahamas Barbados Belize Bermuda Bonaire, Saint Eustatius and Saba British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Cuba Dominica Dominican Republic Grenada Guyana Haiti Jamaica Montserrat Puerto Rico Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Sint Maarten Suriname Trinidad and Tobago Turks and Caicos islands
Sum of Deaths
Confirmed cases in the last 14 days
3 0 111 3 4229 32 5163 108 210 7 2585 39 185 9 150 2 71 1 221 1 6017 123 32 0 119008 2183 25 0 3565 106 8887 230 7910 146 13 1 54540 738 19 0 29 0 64 0 719 22 5072 107 5127 93 696 6
0 10 295 1260 20 642 4 44 0 10 486 8 7108 1 719 140 1528 0 6073 0 2 0 60 209 664 10
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Last Word
A
t 40, Franz Kafka (1883-1924), who never married and had no children, walked through the park in Berlin when he met a girl who was crying because she had lost her favourite doll. She and Kafka searched for the doll unsuccessfully. Kafka told her to meet him there the next day and they would come back to look for her. The next day, when they had not yet found the doll, Kafka gave the girl a letter “written” by the doll saying “please don’t cry. I took a trip to see the world. I will write to you about my adventures.” Thus began a story which continued until the end of Kafka’s life. During their meetings, Kafka read the letters of the doll carefully written with adventures and conversations that the girl found adorable. Finally, Kafka brought back the doll (he bought one) that had returned to Berlin. “It doesn’t look like my doll at all,” said the girl. Kafka handed her another letter in which the doll wrote: “my travels have changed me.” the little girl hugged the new doll and brought her happy home. A year later Kafka died. Many years later, the now-adult girl found a letter inside the doll. In the tiny letter signed by Kafka it was written: “Everything you love will probably be lost, but in the end, love will return in another way.”