Keith Alfred Adolph Blake, Ottery
On Human Rights Day Thursday March 21
my wife Tina and
I decided to spend
the day on shore fishing at the “broken road” at Strandfontein Beach.
While fishing I noticed a large group of young people, with a few grown-ups coming down the beach and they were picking up the dirt left or rather dumped by visitors and some fishermen.
As they walked, people noticed and some even greeted these (middle-class) youth as they moved away towards Muizenberg.
Later as the beach got more and more packed with fishermen, I noticed another group of youth coming down the beach and one of them had a very thin dog on a string leash.
I noticed that these were poor children and as they walked no one even looked up.
It was almost as if these poor children were invisible.
I left my fishing rod and walked towards them. I greeted and invited them to come to my car.
As I opened my boot there was an excited rush, even by the thin dog.
I took out bags of sweets that a kind lady had donated to me.
I handed out handful after handful to these overstretched arms and excited eyes.
After this I was thanked and they walked on still not being seen – not being noticed.
They were probably hoping, wishing, maybe praying that someone would notice their hunger and maybe just maybe offer a sandwich, a cooldrink or maybe a few cents to ease their and their thin faithful dog friend’s need, whose ribs prominently advertised their hunger.
