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Authors: Nelson Mandela
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anything else, so I, what-you-call, [ran] over it. My heart was sore, you know? Because it jumped up, you know, as it was dying, you see. And I couldn’t do anything; I just didn’t see it, man. Yes, poor chap. And there was no reason why I should kill it you know? It was no threat to me, and left me with a very sad feeling.
STENGEL: The snake incident which you mention in the memoirs, were you also superstitious about running over a snake?
MANDELA: No, no, no.
STENGEL: That it was bad luck or a bad omen?
MANDELA: Oh no, no, no. I was not superstitious at all. But just to kill an animal, an innocent reptile, that was what worried me. And especially seeing it through the rear-view mirror, struggling, you know, to be alive. You know, it was a deplorable act on my part. But that was a beautiful area at the time…from Port Elizabeth to Humansdorp. You went through forest, you know, thick forest and where it was absolutely quite still, except…the noise of the birds and so on, but very still. Beautiful area! And…then wild, you see. Before I got to Knysna, I came across a baboon which crossed the road and stood behind a tree and kept on peeping at me, you know? And I liked… such incidents…Ja, Knysna…I sincerely thought that if God came back to earth he would settle there, you know?
3. FROM A CONVERSATION WITH RICHARD STENGEL
I addressed that meeting of the Ministers’ Interdenominational Society of the Western Cape…It’s difficult now to remember the exact thing, but what I was saying was to stress the role of the church in the struggle and to say, that just as the Afrikaners use the pulpit in order to propagate their views, our priests should do exactly the same. And then there was a chap who prayed, Reverend Japhta, who made a very rather remarkable prayer and [he] said, ‘God, we have been praying [to] you, pleading with you, asking you to liberate us. Now we are instructing you to liberate us.’ Something along those lines, and I thought that was very significant.
4. FROM HIS UNPUBLISHED AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL MANUSCRIPT WRITTEN IN PRISON
Although I was now fully committed and had gained some idea of the hazards that accompanied the life of a freedom fighter, I had not seen any major political campaign by blacks and had not even begun giving serious attention to the question of methods. The sacrifices I was called on to make so far went no further than being absent from the family during weekends mainly, returning home late, travelling to address meetings and condemning government policy.
5. FROM HIS UNPUBLISHED AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL MANUSCRIPT WRITTEN IN PRISON
At that time my eldest son, Madiba [Thembi], was five. One day he asked his mother where I lived. I used to return home late at night and leave early in the morning before he was awake. I missed him a great deal during those busy days. I love playing and chatting with children, giving them a bath, feeding and putting them to bed with a little story, and being away from the family has troubled me throughout my political life. I like relaxing at the house, reading quietly, taking in the sweet smell that comes from the pots, sitting around the table with the family and taking out my wife and children. When you can no longer enjoy these simple pleasures something valuable is taken away from your life and you feel it in your daily work.
6. CONVERSATION WITH RICHARD STENGEL
STENGEL: So let’s get to 1944, when you met Evelyn. 2
MANDELA: Oh, I see, yes.
STENGEL:…You met her obviously through Walter [Sisulu] because she was Walter’s cousin.
MANDELA: Yes, quite.
STENGEL:…Can you tell me about the circumstances that you met her?
MANDELA: Well, I wouldn’t like to go into that matter. You know our people resent us talking about divorce, you know, and so on…I didn’t mind myself…I didn’t want to be presented in a way that omits the dark spots in my life, but I couldn’t convince them, including people like Walter Sisulu. I just couldn’t
STENGEL: The snake incident which you mention in the memoirs, were you also superstitious about running over a snake?
MANDELA: No, no, no.
STENGEL: That it was bad luck or a bad omen?
MANDELA: Oh no, no, no. I was not superstitious at all. But just to kill an animal, an innocent reptile, that was what worried me. And especially seeing it through the rear-view mirror, struggling, you know, to be alive. You know, it was a deplorable act on my part. But that was a beautiful area at the time…from Port Elizabeth to Humansdorp. You went through forest, you know, thick forest and where it was absolutely quite still, except…the noise of the birds and so on, but very still. Beautiful area! And…then wild, you see. Before I got to Knysna, I came across a baboon which crossed the road and stood behind a tree and kept on peeping at me, you know? And I liked… such incidents…Ja, Knysna…I sincerely thought that if God came back to earth he would settle there, you know?
3. FROM A CONVERSATION WITH RICHARD STENGEL
I addressed that meeting of the Ministers’ Interdenominational Society of the Western Cape…It’s difficult now to remember the exact thing, but what I was saying was to stress the role of the church in the struggle and to say, that just as the Afrikaners use the pulpit in order to propagate their views, our priests should do exactly the same. And then there was a chap who prayed, Reverend Japhta, who made a very rather remarkable prayer and [he] said, ‘God, we have been praying [to] you, pleading with you, asking you to liberate us. Now we are instructing you to liberate us.’ Something along those lines, and I thought that was very significant.
4. FROM HIS UNPUBLISHED AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL MANUSCRIPT WRITTEN IN PRISON
Although I was now fully committed and had gained some idea of the hazards that accompanied the life of a freedom fighter, I had not seen any major political campaign by blacks and had not even begun giving serious attention to the question of methods. The sacrifices I was called on to make so far went no further than being absent from the family during weekends mainly, returning home late, travelling to address meetings and condemning government policy.
5. FROM HIS UNPUBLISHED AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL MANUSCRIPT WRITTEN IN PRISON
At that time my eldest son, Madiba [Thembi], was five. One day he asked his mother where I lived. I used to return home late at night and leave early in the morning before he was awake. I missed him a great deal during those busy days. I love playing and chatting with children, giving them a bath, feeding and putting them to bed with a little story, and being away from the family has troubled me throughout my political life. I like relaxing at the house, reading quietly, taking in the sweet smell that comes from the pots, sitting around the table with the family and taking out my wife and children. When you can no longer enjoy these simple pleasures something valuable is taken away from your life and you feel it in your daily work.
6. CONVERSATION WITH RICHARD STENGEL
STENGEL: So let’s get to 1944, when you met Evelyn. 2
MANDELA: Oh, I see, yes.
STENGEL:…You met her obviously through Walter [Sisulu] because she was Walter’s cousin.
MANDELA: Yes, quite.
STENGEL:…Can you tell me about the circumstances that you met her?
MANDELA: Well, I wouldn’t like to go into that matter. You know our people resent us talking about divorce, you know, and so on…I didn’t mind myself…I didn’t want to be presented in a way that omits the dark spots in my life, but I couldn’t convince them, including people like Walter Sisulu. I just couldn’t
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