trouvaille

"Teach her that the idea of 'gender roles' is absolute nonsense. Do not ever tell her that she should or should not do something because she is a girl. 'Because you are a girl' is never a reason for anything. Ever." - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions Today (9 August) in South Africa it is Women's Day. On this day on 1956, 20 000 women (of all races) marched together to the Union Building in Pretoria to petition against South Africa's pass laws. The women stood silently for 30 minutes and then they sang the following protest song: Wathint' Abafazi Whatint' imbokodo! which translates to Now you have touched the women, you have struck a rock! As a women myself, I feel like it is obvious why this day is so important to me. In the past women were seen as objects, someone who belongs in the kitchen, someone who is submissive to men, someone whose only job is to be a mother and she shouldn't tr...

Hey beautiful people! I am currently hosting a buddy read. I promoted it on Instagram so you're welcome to comment on here or  contact me on Instagram or Pinterest. For those of you who don't know what a buddy read is, it is basically an online book club where people in the group read the same book together and encourage each other to read more and then when you finished reading it, you have an online discussion about the book.  So currently we have made a Whatsapp group to chat and get to know each other better and on which we could also talk to each other about the book we are going to read. Currently we are voting for a book and then we are going to start reading. So all this is very exciting and I would love for any of you also to join us. So please contact me if you are interested. Here is a link to my Buddy Read post on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CDEiabjAmJv/

This virus has been going on for a while and I figured it should be time for me to write the generic Covid 19 post. So here I am. I know most of us is either in self-isolation, lockdown, quarantine or just social distancing. Here in South Africa we have been put in lockdown for 21 days. Hopefully it will end after the 21 days. As an introvert this isn’t as hard for me as it probably is for some of you. I like being on my own and not going out. Of course, the fact that I do not have the option of going out and that I am trapped in my house with the rest of my house is quite hard for me. So I know there are extroverts who need stimulation from others, not just their families and they crave to go outside. I would just like to let you know that I believe that you will make it. You are going to be okay. And if any of you feel depressed, anxious or just need someone to talk to, you are welcome to contact me. Instagram or Twitter. So we have been put in a bad situation, but I feel we shouldn’...

These last few weeks, I decided that I am going to follow my dreams. I guess that this is pretty much a talked out topic on this blog. But I have come to the realisation these last few days how hard it actually is. And I felt obligated to talk to you guys about it. So I decided that I am going to follow my dreams, immediately. Now. And apparently I decided that nothing was going to stop me. And of course I didn't think it was going to be easy, but I didn’t think that this intense fear would overwhelm me. I realised to reach my dreams, you have to start at the bottom. You have to take that step and put yourself out there. So people actually can see you and your talent. And help you to reach your dreams. So my dream is to be a writer, journalist. Something in that general direction. And the first step is to join my campus’ newspaper. But saying you are going to do something and actually doing it, is very different experiences and very different confidence levels. But I was actually a...

“Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart.” – Roy T. Bennett Today someone talked to me about choosing a word for your year. Basically it is a word which sums up your goals and what you wish for 2020. I have heard examples like, ‘create’, ‘survive’, ‘revival’ and more. After hearing this concept being thoroughly discussed I felt that I should also try and choose a word. And almost immediately the word popped up in my head. Dream. But what does this word entail? What does this word say about my future? What does it say about the year I wish for? So that quote from Roy T. Bennett came to mind. Everyone dreams, but the thing that actually stops that dream from coming true is your fear. It may be about insecurities, feeling that you’re not good enough to actually reach your dream. So this word isn’t just about dreaming, because everyone dreams. But it is taking action so you can actually reach your dreams. It is taking the risk that you have alwa...

“I realized I was afraid of living without him.” How to describe this novel in one word? Love. Even though at first this novel doesn’t seem like a love story or romance novel, this can be described as one of the greatest love stories ever told. The plot of the story twists and turns. And this gnawing feeling presides in your gut and you know, that Will and Lou are meant to be. You are not just seeing things. This is a love story and it is only in the last few hundred pages that when Lou actually tells Treena that she thinks she loves Will, that we can exhale with relief. This book is gripping. A page-turner. It is one of those books which you cannot put down even though it is one o’clock in the morning and you have a class at eight the next morning. You just want to keep reading. You have to know what is going to happen next. You need to know when Louisa is going to proclaim her love for Will and you need to know if her love is going to save him. But I am going to stop writing now. I d...

Calling all music lovers and musicians! You will love this book. As a musician myself, I loved this book. Get ready to relate to Michael Holme (the protagonist). For this book review I am using a different format – feedback would be appreciated. Here is Vikram Seth’s novel  An Equal Music  available on Amazon if any of you are interested in the book. About the author:  Vikram Seth is an Indian novelist and poet, most known for his novels  A Suitable Boy  and  An Equal Music.  He has received several awards like the WH Smith Literary Award and the Padma Shri for Literature & Education. Setting:  The setting of this book is mainly in London, but also briefly in Vienna and Venice. It takes place in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Type of narrator:  First person narrator. Summary:  Michael Holme is the protagonist of this novel. A 30-something male who plays the second violin in a successful string quartet called the Maggiore Quartet. He...