While riding one day a cowboy met an Indian riding along with a dog and a
sheep and began a conversation.

Cowboy: "Hey, cool dog you got there. Mind if I speak to him?"

Indian: "Dog no talk."

Cowboy: "Hey dog, how's it going?"

Dog: "Doin' alright."

Indian: Look of shock.

Cowboy: "Is this Indian your owner?" pointing at the Indian.

Dog: "Yep"

Cowboy: "How does he treat you?"

Dog: "Real good. He walks me twice a day, feeds me great food, and takes me to
the lake once a week to play."

Indian: Look of total disbelief.

Cowboy: "Mind if I talk to your horse?"

Indian: "Horse no talk."

Cowboy: "Hey horse, how's it going?"

Horse: "Cool."

Indian: Extreme look of shock.

Cowboy: "Is this your owner?" pointing at the Indian.

Horse: "Yes sir"

Cowboy: "How does he treat you?"

Horse: "Pretty good, thanks for asking. He rides me regularly, brushes me down
often, and keeps me in a shed to protect me" ..

Indian: Total look of utter amazement.

Cowboy: "Mind if I talk to your sheep?"

Indian: "Sheep liar."

This is a very positive move on one hand, but i do wonder what it will do for crime levels in these areas...

I closed the door behind me and saw my sister-in-law standing there with a look of disbelief on her face. “How can you invite someone for a meal if you know we are only going to have soup and bread?”

I was living in Holland at the time and my brother and sister-in-law came from South Africa to experience their first European winter. The weather didn’t disappoint us – it started to snow on Christmas day. We were out every day to enable them to experience as much as they can and we usually came home travel weary at the end of the day.

My friend Jenny returned from her Christmas break and stopped by to say she is back and I invited her spontaneously to join us later for soup. The fact was, we only had one can of soup between the three of us, and to invite a guest was really stretching it. By the time the soup reached the table it had little meatballs in and a bit of cream for a special touch. We enjoyed it with good Dutch bread and cheese.

For a second time that evening I closed the door behind me and heard the amazement in my sister-in-law’s voice when she said “I can not believe that we had such a wonderful evening visiting and we only had soup and bread.” Sister-in-law is an excellent cook and when someone comes over to their house for a meal it is well planned and organized – just the best comes out on the table. Because Jenny was a stranger to her, she felt uncomfortable by sharing a simple meal like soup and bread. She realized that evening fellowship around the table is more important than the food that goes on the table.

Hospitality is very much my heartbeat. Over the years I have learnt many lessons and the biggest one is that hospitality is all about people and not things. It is freely giving with no hope of return. I give without expecting anything back. I have learnt to give with no strings attached, because if I don’t, I quickly find myself having a little self pity party and I can’t even lift my hand to make a cup of tea. Although hospitality is really one of my gifts, I often get myself so caught up in taking care of things that I have no time to take care of people. Sometimes it is choice, and even a bigger choice when you have to be hospitable to someone you don’t even like. I have learnt that hospitality not just refreshes or nourish the recipient, but it also refreshes and nourishes me. Many occasion I thought “now why on earth did I invite these people?” but by the time they leave I am refreshed and encouraged.

There have been times that my guests didnÂ’t treat me or my belongings with respect and kindness. I became very upset and angry with them and quickly had to learn to forgive them. Forgiveness plays just as important part in hospitality as in any other area of our lives. I have had to learn to forgive otherwise I will punish the next guest that comes my way for what the others did. I have to make sure my heart and emotions are ready to welcome the next person in.

A generous heart is such a big part of hospitality. Not just generous with our money, but with our love, our encouragement, our possessions, and our time. We can give without loving, but we cannot love without giving. A little becomes much if we bring with a heart to bless. I know the most hospitable family I’ve ever met that lives in Amsterdam. Since their kids were small they taught them generosity and hospitality. It is a wonderful experience to visit them, as the kids treat you with so much respect. Their house is always open for guests. Of course there is a balance too – when they are going through a tough time, or writing exams, very clear boundaries are set. Very often we are more hospitable to others than our own families. The best dishes and silverware come out when guests come, but I am a firm believer that hospitality begins at home.

Some people are holding back because they feel their house is not ready yet, they donÂ’t have the matching this or that, but hospitality needs to be looked at as sharing what we have, not what we donÂ’t have, or what we would like to have. I love pretty teacups, and I am always on the lookout for charity shops where I can find the best bargains. I love to set a beautiful table to bless my family and friends with it, but very often I am at a place in another country where I donÂ’t have them, but that will not hold me back to offer someone a drink and sit down to get to know them better. Maybe I can tell more about that in another article.

Hospitality helps us to cultivate an environment of honoring one another. Tact in hospitality is making your guest feel at home when you actually wish they were. Is your home a place where your family is honoured and feels welcome? A place where others love to come to because you are at peace with yourself? We live in a society where greed and disrespect are the order of the day. I would love to encourage you to enlarge your hearts for others – yes, before we can make room at our table, we need to make room in our hearts first – and experience the joy of leaving people better than we found them.

Author: Rita Pretorius AKA Pronkertjie
Copyright. All rights reserved.
July 2006

Beeld-deurloop: Cecille Cilliers

Hulle pendel tussen Stellenbosch en Vishoek, Dawie en Griet. In die week boer hulle, naweke kom hulle na hul eenheid hier in die aftree-oord.

So raak hulle hier onder ons ingeburger, en wanneer hulle uiteindelik nie meer kans sien vir die boerdery of die pendelary nie, kan hulle finaal hier intrek, klaar tuis vir die laaste skof.

Vrydagaand in die Klubhuis sit ek langs Griet en gesels. Hoe gaan dit? vra ek. Sy het altyd interessanthede te vertel van die plaas en die omgewing of van haar kinders. Maar vanaand is dit Â’n treurmare. Daar is by hulle op die plaas ingebreek, vertel sy. Terwyl hulle in die huis was.

Iets het haar wakker gemaak, en sy stoot aan Dawie: Hoor jy dit? Dis niks nie, Hart, antwoord hy. Slaap maar.

En toe gaan die alarm af, die hoë geloei wat die hart tot stilstand ruk.

Dawie spring op, skakel ligte aan. Binne minute is die gewapende veiligheidsdienste daar, die polisie op hulle hakke.

Maar toe is alles reeds doodstil in die huis, die boef weg. Hy het twee ruite in Â’n kombuisvenster gebreek, daardeur geklim, maar met sy instap in die vertrek in, is die alarm se rooi ligstroom gebreek. Wat Griet gehoor het, was die sagte woergeluidjie wat Â’n minuut lank duur voordat die alarm afgaan. In daardie minuut grasie wat hy gegun is, en voordat hy weg van die geloei die donker in gevlug het, het die inbreker Griet se handsak gegryp, en haar naweektassie, wat in die kombuis reggesit was vir die tog Vishoek toe.

Die geldelike verlies is nie so groot nie, sê Griet, hoewel dit ophoop, want in die handsak was die afstandbeheer vir die hek, vir die motor, en die sleutels. En haar kredietkaart en ID – alles moet vervang word, die kredietkaart gestop. Dit is die volgende oggend douvoordag gedoen, maar daar is nogtans duisende rande daarmee bestee. Slotte moet vervang word, en wat die motor betref, skyn dit feitlik onmoontlik te wees. Maar alles is gedoen, sê sy, en hier is ons. Sommer met die bakkie, want die motor se sleutels is nou soek . . .

En toe breek haar kommer skielik deur: Ons seun – hy woon op Stellenbosch – was so bekommerd oor ons, en so goed vir ons. Ons moes opsluit die volgende aande by hom gaan slaap. En hy bly bekommerd. Miskien moet ons liewer die plaas opgee, sê hy. Ons word oud, en ons is weerloos . . .

Weerloos? Weerloos teen wát? wonder ek.

Teen die ouderdom? Dawie lewer nog elke jaar sy wavragte druiwe vir die wynmakers, sy vel toon die tekens van jarelange son, maar hyÂ’s skraal en rateltaai, lag maklik, speel die mondfluitjie met oorgawe, en het Griet vir haar tagtigste verjaardag die vorige jaar met die QE2 Engeland toe gevat.

Teen seniliteit? In die naweektassie was Griet se bloeddrukmeter – dié meet sy self, omdat haar bloeddruk so maklik bokspring. In haar handsak was haar sakrekenaar, sodat sy moeiteloos haar transaksies kan doen; en haar elektroniese Sudoku, vir haar so verslawend en onontbeerlik as my blokkiesraaisels. Nee, teen die jare is Dawie en Griet nie weerloos nie.

Maar weerloos wel teen die gewelddadigheid, die misdaad, die kultuur van toe-eiening wat in ons onderstebo samelewing posgevat het. Hulle seun is nie verniet bekommerd nie. Ons behoort almal bekommerd te wees.

Happy Birthday Madiba!

Good Morning! Another wonderful unny: day today! Smack on the sun protection cause it's going to be a hot day!

4 days until we are all on holiday. Yipeee

A friend did a mediation course recently - the course was free but it is expected of you to do deal with a some conflict situations in the community.

Around 6pm I received a call from her..... "hey R. I am going to do some mediation somewhere near ..... I am supposed to tell someone I am going for in case something happens.. Have to see both parties but will be back at 9:30. Bye, I have to run."

Well, I put the phone down and realised that the only information I have is her mobile phone number. I called back quickly but she was out the door already! :duh:

She hasn't called yet.... Oh boy, I am sure she'll be alright!

Todt confident over winning streak

Michael Schumacher signalled that the 2006 world title battle is very much alive with a dominant lights-to-flag victory in the French Grand Prix. read here

Over the last 3 weeks each village in the area has been having a market. They call it a loppis. The wifey saw something she liked yesterday and bought this



does anybody know what you would call this, please?








ps.. and you may ask how much we paid for it