The coloured community:

I am a Namibian born coloured whose roots stem from here, South Africa. My father is a South African man, as well as my mother. Even though I cannot class myself as a "coloured' South African, my roots come quite close. In my culture, they have derived the importance of dreaming. We believe ones dreams are some sort of message, that signify some sort of aspect in your life. These dreams, even though may only be subconscious, they carry weight in the understanding of yourself and your emotions. We often put emphasis on these dreams to clarify and form an appropriate vision of that current place in your life. Whether that is dealing with personal troubles, family or even friends.

Being stable and in a "good place" in your life would be the second aspect I have learnt in my culture or ethnic group. Many, as stereotypical as it is, of the coloured community fall into bad habits and with the wrong crowds. It is quite known that many young girls become mothers when they still have their whole lives ahead of them. This in turn, pushes a lot of families in the coloured community to want better for their children as they believe we, in particular as the youth fall victim to these misfortunes in our lives.

I am proud of my culture/ethnic group as it has taught me to strive for more in life rather than to become a young mother, which is not always a bad thing I may add, but to want more in life and to dream big.

Social networking and relations

If I had to analyse my interaction networks in full, I appreciate the full range of people that are included in them. Ranging from my closest friends and relatives to clients I gather for my photography business and or romantic relationships. All these connections contribute to my levels of how well and sufficiently I am able to network.

My family serves as the basis for where networking begins. They are the ones with who you learn from and who you are also able to teach.. They make up all of the emotional ups and downs. Whether it is the busy ladies night watching some Netflix, family gatherings or the births of new babies or just the opportunity to share a problem, my family members remain the most essential factor in my personal growth. These people cannot discuss things without feeling their feelings, the generation of which shaped us to be who we are today.

Another aspect of my network is my group of friends, which is very important to me.These are my people who are my stay, come rain or shine. We enjoy many moments, laughing about the past and sharing in our hopes for our future. From school time friends to one or another first year fellow student, having conversations I know I wont forget. Each friendship has its own private world. Whether we partake in the same hobbies or try to support each other in other aspects of our lives , my friends will always be there. 

Last but not the least, those for my photography business take the form of a creative network with a business attitude. I capture pictures that showcase the cherished moments, expressive ones , and the raw nature of people through my camera. Such pictures are cherished by the individual as well as an entire family. As clients commit to me by picking me to be the photographer of their most beloved moments, I seek and go beyond expectation in creating images which have a deep personal connection to them.

In these networks, I feel a validity as a member of the community I have found and worked hard to create, and this shows us the connection of human interaction, very importantly, relationships throughout our lives. The fact that I was provided with the support and love of my family and the warm environment of clients morphed me in their own special ways to develop me as a person. I was able to realise and understand that what I derived from others may be actually lying within myself as they show a reflection within myself. For me, these interactions make me realise that we are all unique and we have the ability to build on and improve our communities in times of any in life as this ability can lead to a united community.

A day in my life you could say.

I woke up this morning, feeling crumby as usual for a 07:30 class. Had my mandatory coffee and rusk combo (my mom made it the best), yes it tasted like heaven on my tongue, no need to ask. 

I then after, started with my morning routine of brushing my teeth, doing a soft glam makeup look, styling my curls with some of that good old gel I can never go without and last the most difficult part of the morning, choosing an outfit for school. Went with a summer polka dotted dress with frills at the shoulder of the dress. 

I later arrived at school with my eyelids practically at war with my brain to stay open. The lecture was uhm well not the most engaging this time around. I decided later to work on my summaries throughout the lecture so I could feel productive in some way. My friends two friends and I later met up at the library to work on a group assignment we had for my Communications class, one of the few classes I became fond of. We worked tirelessly on the assignment. From researching to reference and source lists compiled at the end of our assignments. We successfully submitted it though. A win is a win!

After our group assignment I walked right on home since I live quite close to campus. My Airpods were blaring beats like never before, only the best artists of course. Talking about The weeknd, Cigarettes after sex and Kings of Leon.

Came home feeling better than before after spending the whole day after my lecture in the library working on my group assignment  (only got back at 18:00) . Decided that dinner would be some air fried stakes and chips. It all came out crispy, juicy and all spiced up like how a chef would do it (def not tooting my own horn) but it was great.

After that mouth watering dinner, I took a warm shower before getting into my pjs and retiring to my bed. Had a little more Social Anthropology reading to do. My lecturer is super cool though, just loves to make sure we always have a little something to do (tonnes of reading basically).

Reading got me all tired and drowsy which clearly indicated it was time to count sheep, and so I did.

A perspective of the "other" side

15 Years old in a high school where you know nobody, including yourself, I was caught between one would say a crossfire. A discriminatory one at that. A coloured girl in an all white private school, I stood out like a sore thumb. I was below them, othered, because my hair was not as straight and my skin was white but never white enough.

This alone should tell you, I am no stranger to the stereotype of "othering". In fact I know many of us (even perhaps you reading this) has been subjected or thus maybe even guilty (don't lie we've all been there) of it on a scale either so severe for you to change your perception of those who've done that to you or it was a mere shrug off, just another day type of thing. Whether one or the other, either you or myself, we've been accustomed to formulate our own conclusions of race, gender roles, physical appearance, wealth and more.

"Othering" is a tactic best suited to single out and exclude beings from the very thing that makes them unique, best described by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, The danger of a single story.

These Eurocentric beliefs should not condone you if your nose is different, or if you've got curves, curly, straight or kinky hair. This Western conception of a set standard of beauty and wealth is an idea that has expired, many years ago.

I leave you with this, you are not defined by a stereotype, but you are by the conclusions you draw from those different around you.