How do we honor those we love, those who moved on through death or through circumstance? We migrate through places, people and through time we experience different bits of ourselves we were not familiar with. But how we keep alive that spark within us, without our hearts becoming bitter in the process ? Music was and is my response. The most honest, the most true..
Noel, my best friend, who passed a few months ago dragged me everywhere. He knew, if left to my own devices, I would read under a tree, compose Music or enjoy a great meal at a fancy restaurant with a book. Look, I enjoy solitude and have no problem going it alone. So he made it his mission to expose me to everything. “You need to be ready by 6pm, Auriol…” and off we would go. It was always an adventure. Seeing new plays, visiting the theatre, attending a book launch, quizzes evenings, catching a new movie, catching a live band, poetry evenings, dance festivals, food festivals, First Thursdays. He opened my world to so many people and places. Who else was gonna be at my side when I opened for Ben Harper or met him? Noel. After a performance I overheard, “She’s a great performer….” and then Noel’s voice saying with pride to these strangers, “I know, she’s my best friend!” Haha
One of the festivals he surprised me with was Infecting The City. An arts initiative where the arts in all its multifaceted forms infect every day spaces in Cape Town, enabling working class people to get a taste of what artists are up to. We’d walk through a route planned by the festival and catch so many performances on a Saturday morning. He never wanted to miss out on anything….and I secretly loved being dragged with. Running into all kinds of people I haven’t seen in a while.
He would be pleased knowing that I am participating this year! November is set to be a busy month. Three performances and…Summercamp! Perhaps, now is the time to be more adventurous. To plan that trip with my daughter to a somewhere we have never been before. Or simply to embrace uncertainty. Knowing that everything is always gonna work out. It’s always gonna be okay