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F UT UR E F OC U S
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JENNY MATHEWS
OF LEGENDS AND LEGACIES
“FAMILY HISTORY BUILDS
BRIDGES BETWEEN THE
GENERATIONS OF OUR
FAMILIES.”
W
e have just enjoyed
an amazing month of
renewing family connections. It
must be something to do with the
exhausting drought we’ve experienced this year, but we found we
really needed this time to give us
perspective on truly important
things in life: Family ties and
friendships are the foundation
of a sense of belonging and the
building blocks of contentment especially in tough times!
“Bridges are not built
by accident.”
Fifty two souls all connected by
blood or marriage, and ranging
in age from my skoonpa Charlie,
91, to my new grandson of 4
46 JUN/JUL 2016
months, gathered on the farm for
a Mathews family reunion. It was
truly special to be given a moment
to look at farmlife through diffe
rent lenses, the eyes of people who
have cherished memories of happy
childhoods here. Simple things
like the smell of freshly harvested
mealies or the crisp autumn touch
of the evening breeze evoked
memories and began conversations
with, “Do you remember when...!”
Many stories were related,
including memories of tough
times - like the years during the
depression when they sheltered
travellers passing by who would
work around the farmyard in
exchange for food and a bed; or
when their father was so badly
gored by a bull that he nearly
died.
I watched the youngsters’
widening eyes when they were
told how it was a full days trek
to town with the horse and cart
to see friends or fetch fresh supplies. They heard how the plains
were once “teeming with game”
and how Granny Hettie made
her famous ‘boereseep’ which a
10-year-old Charlie would load
onto the ox-wagons and trek
with Boesman, the faithful fa