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Health & Fitness

Reflecting on the Life of Nelson Mandela

The recent passing of Nelson Mandela has had such a profound effect on the entire world. Ever since I heard the news, I have been reflecting on what a remarkable life he had, and what a profound example of peace he provided to the international stage.

 

The tributes from around the globe have been wonderful for such a highly respected figure. The timing of his passing is also not good because of rising tensions in South Africa at this point. Mr. Mandela was the voice of reason during some very tumultuous periods in history.

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His voice will be missed, but his legacy of peace and love will remain. It will be needed both in South Africa, and the rest of the world for that matter, in the days and years ahead.

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A Long Walk

 

I remember very well reading Nelson Mandela’s remarkable autobiography for a term paper I wrote during college. I was shocked at points and heartbroken at others while reading the remarkable story of his life in South Africa and his imprisonment on Robben Island.

 

I could not put the book down, I would go to class, and then rush back to read another chapter. I did not stop reading even while eating, I would have the book in one hand and stir some soup for dinner with the other.

 

His life was so remarkable, to live through the horrors of apartheid and the severe harshness of that desolate prison, I felt such profound respect for him. The fact that he survived in prison for 27 years, that alone is unbelievable. He persevered to become the president of South Africa and lead a nation through a very volatile period.

 

Mr. Mandela understood human nature which is what made him such an effective leader. He is a case study for the power of diplomacy and peaceful negotiation to achieve progress. He was a “big picture” leader with an understanding that his actions would have direct consequences on the future for South Africa.

 

Courage among chaos

 

Nelson Mandela was imprisoned several times under the charges of treason and attempts to overthrow the government. He used the trials to show his conviction of being morally opposed to apartheid. He fought for freedom and democracy, even when the hope to successfully achieve that goal seemed bleak, he was tireless in his pursuit of it.

 

The nation of South Africa was spiraling out of control, the white minority went to dreadful lengths to keep the black majority disenfranchised and powerless. While Mandela was in prison, the violence grew so significantly, that a civil war appeared to be looming.

 

Nelson Mandela exhibited incredible courage during his time in prison enduring poor conditions and disease. Upon his release, he negotiated ceaselessly for an end to the oppressiveness of apartheid. He did so peacefully and was eventually successful.

 

The apex

 

Nelson Mandela was elected as the first black president of South Africa in the first ever universal democratic election in 1994. His presidency was marked by the reconciliation and healing of a country as it transitioned from white rule to a society where many cultures would now have to govern together on equal footing.

 

He accomplished that objective through a variety of ways including the realization of the importance of sports in national healing and in the international perspective. South Africa was chosen as the host nation of the 1995 Rugby World Cup, and Mandela chose, in a rather unpopular decision at the time, to keep the nick name and the colors of the South African national rugby team.

 

This decision made him very popular with the whites in South Africa who loved their team, the Springboks, and desperately wanted to retain that name in the future.

 

In fact, South Africa went on to win the 1995 Rugby World Cup, which went a long way toward reconciling and unifying the new post-apartheid nation. Mr. Mandela presented the championship trophy in a Springboks jersey, while I watched that moment on the news at home in the United States, I knew that positive change would come for South Africa.

 

Mandela was also instrumental in South Africa’s successful bid to host the soccer World Cup in 2010. The FIFA soccer World Cup is recognized as the most watched sports event throughout the entire world, and South Africa would be on the center stage.

 

 Mr. Mandela’s push during the host nation selection process in 2004 was to showcase to the world the progress of South Africa, which at that point, was ten years removed from the end of apartheid. In 2004, the selection committee did exactly that, and awarded South Africa the honor of hosting the 2010 World Cup.

 

Hope prevails

 

Nelson Mandela will be remembered as a man who risked it all to achieve for himself and others the values which he believed in strongly: freedom, dignity, equality, and peace. I believe that the hope we can obtain by the example of his life will prevail as his beloved South Africa undergoes another transition here in the coming months.

 

The life and example of Nelson Mandela symbolizes to me that anything is possible if you stand by your convictions. It provides me hope that we, throughout the world, can move forward from the dark days of our past and into a bright future filled with peace and freedom for all people.

 

 

 

 

 

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