Six years ago, at exactly this time – the start of Arts Fest – I moved down to Grahamstown. I’d been coming down for years to visit my sister; and to ‘do’ Fest.
Six years ago, at exactly this time – the start of Arts Fest – I moved down to Grahamstown. I’d been coming down for years to visit my sister; and to ‘do’ Fest.
This time, though, there was to be no farewell to G'town in the second week of July.
I was here to stay.
I’d had the feeling that I needed to live here since the previous December.
When I returned to Joburg in January and announced I was ‘semigrating’ to Gtown, the standard response was “You’ll be so bored in a small town.”
Never has a statement been more wrong. And never have I been happier than I am now.
Grahamstown might be small in size, but my goodness is it vast in stature and incredible humanity.
Rhodes, our High Court, the various festivals that happen here, its plethora of NGOs – all draw some of the most fabulous human beings I have ever met from around the country and the world.
And I have been overwhelmed by the kindness of so many locals – people who have gone out of their way to help this blundering ‘stadsjapie’ in so many different ways.
Okay, so I’m gushing. But I’m Greek, I’m emotional and I love G'town.
Standing on one of the high ridges of bot gardens yesterday, gazing over the town spreading out before us, my sister remarked that I’d made Gtown my own.
It would be more accurate to say that G'town made me whole.
When I left Jozi, I was fleeing a city life that had exhausted me. I had been earning well, but my real dreams were pulling away from me like a receding mist.
I was losing them.
Thank goodness, G'town is where they came to wait for me.
I had wanted to drum since I was a kid. My mom didn’t want the din, I hated the piano my parents bought me and I hadn’t played music since I was nine.
By the time I turned 30, I thought I’d left it too late to drum. But in Gtown, the most blissful series of events transpired that have resulted in this being the fourth festival where I will be performing as a drummer. And I swear, this could only have happened here.
Five festivals ago, my then brand new drum kit was assembled in my lounge.
I had begun to try and live my dream, except I had no clue how to – until I met one of the best drummers in the country during ArtsFest 2009.
Kesivan Naidoo was that year’s winner of Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Jazz. Introduced to me by a mutual friend – another musician here for fest – Kesivan and I recognised each other’s deep passion for the instrument.
So moved was he that I was willing to try, even in my 40s, that in his busiest Festival in years, he cancelled a press conference and rehearsal to spend an afternoon with me.
It was the drum lesson that changed everything. Larry, Anton and I started SunshiP, my band of joy, just months later.
Kes and I remain firm friends, he comes to my gigs and I go to his, and I will be eternally grateful to him, to Grahamstown and to Arts Fest for what they’ve brought into my life.
Indeed, as we enter another 11 Days of Amazing, I could run up to the monument and kiss everyone in the Festival office on the cheek for what they create each year.
For what they bring to G'town, to us, to me. I could do exactly the same to the key decision makers at the School of Journalism and Media Studies who gave me the opportunity to teach Media Law and Ethics.
I cannot express how happy lecturing has made me – how joyful and abundant I feel at the opportunity to impart insight to young people that teach me something g new about myself every day.
I have truly never been less bored in my life. And now, I get to contribute to the best local newspaper in the world. My dreams finally occupy my being completely.
So between now and the end of the year, I am going to periodically ‘G'town gush’ in the ‘Stratosphere’; and talk about everything and everyone I love here.
You are all amazing – and you’ve literally given me back my life. Have a very happy festival everyone. The City of Saints is literally the town of dreams.
