Our friend Fée Halsted, founder of Caversham-based Ardmore Ceramic Art, has been honoured for her contribution to the arts in South Africa at the glitzy Mbokodo Awards, held at the Inanda Polo Club in Johannesburg, on Thursday, December 8.

Halsted was nominated in the category of traditional and indigenous art, which celebrates women whose work, be it music, painting, handicraft or other form, is created using indigenous materials, based on traditional methods and meanings within the context of a given culture.
“It was a very special occasion and an honour to be nominated alongside all these dynamic women,” said Halsted.

Other categories include: women in media, literature, jazz, visual arts, poetry, fashion and design, shining light, music, dance, theatre, opera, girl child of promise, lifetime achievement and film.  Previous winners include Nadine Gordimer, Sibongile Khumalo, Mary Sibande, Gcina Mhlophe and Antjie Krog.

Carol Bouwer, of Carol Bouwer Productions, which hosts the awards, said: “The arts are an essential part of our ever evolving nation. While the collective achievements of this year’s award recipients are impressive, what’s truly inspiring is their commitment to making a difference in communities through the arts.
“The awards are indeed a unique platform that consolidates the incredible work done by South African women through honouring their immense contribution in the fields of arts and culture.”

The theme of the 2016 awards was ’60 Years On…’ and during the course of the evening guests were taken on a journey that marked significant South African milestones and events from the Women’s March of 1956.  The Mbokodo Awards are supported by the Department of Arts and Culture, Siyabonga Ceramics and the Ministry of Women.

Horses read people.  

No matter how sure of ourselves we think we are, or we convince ourselves we are, horses know.  

I’ll never forget my first lesson after 15 years away from any serious riding. The trainer knew I had previous experience and she had seen me helping my daughter prepare for her lessons.  She felt comfortable enough with what she had seen to send me down to the lower barn to prepare a horse to ride.  

I was so excited and I must say, a little apprehensive. I had ridden for a long time as a kid and had been super comfortable in my skin back then, but now I was different. I was older now, and a single mother of two girls who needed me. You know how it is when you’re a parent. All of what you have goes to support your children, especially when resources are limited. I couldn’t afford to waste time, energy, or money, and I certainly couldn’t afford to get hurt. On top of that, this dream to ride again seemed extravagant.   

What was I doing even toying with the idea of riding horses again?!

On one hand I was energized and excited. At the same time I was feeling anxious and intimidated.  “This is kinda scary” I thought to myself …

and then I wondered where that thought came from. 

When I was 12 or 14 or so, I was fearless. I rode around barefoot in my  bathing suit, riding bareback and double, standing up and sliding off rumps in the fields at a gallop, and jumping off swimming horses into Crystal Lake.  I was the type of kid who would get on anything. I would be the first one on a young horse right after spending a few weeks of round pen work with a bag of feed in the saddle on the filly or colt’s back.  

As an adult returning to horses, I felt intimidated by the large animal in the stall with me. 

The horse was a male chestnut gelding that lots of kids at the barn rode.  His name was Fred, and much like his name, he himself was nothing fancy. He was just a simple and reliable citizen. But in that instance, there in the stall, just him and I, he didn’t seem like a willing partner.  I didn’t know why he was moving around so much. He seemed so unsettled.

I had no idea that my own energy was affecting the horse.

 I spoke quietly at first and then I thought I should be more dominant so I tried being firm. The more I tried to be in charge, the harder my heart pounded. 

He sent every signal he could to tell me he wasn’t a happy camper, including short of pinning his ears (a sign of serious irritation from a horse). I just didn’t understand why he was so unhappy. I got him brushed and tacked up, but it wasn’t an easy or pleasant experience.  It seemed more like work than fun. 

Interestingly now, 15 years and many equine partners later, I reflect on that first adult experience with horses.  With my understanding and knowledge,  I recognize other would-be horse lovers in my old boots. 

When it was happening, I didn’t understands why Fred was anxious and irritated.  Never did I imagine at that point that he was reading my energy.  

Only 15 days have gone by since the beginning of the new year, and already some are saying that the resolutions they made are unobtainable. I can hardly count the number of friends and family members who have given up on or lost track of the goals they set for 2017, and I know many more who did not set any at all simply because they thought that change was impossible.

In reality, out of all things, change is perhaps the most possible.

Change happens all around us. It happens every single minute of every single day. Over the course of a year, almost every aspect of your life will become different in some small way, whether you notice it or not. Maybe you will lose a good friend, or gain a new one. Maybe you will get new job, or get better at doing your old one. Maybe you will realize that you were right about something, or change your perspective on an issue that intrigues you.

You will change in 2017, this you simply cannot avoid. The trick is to choose the direction of that change. That is what making New Year’s resolutions is about.

As the saying goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day”, and the new you cannot not be built in 15. Shaping the change in your life will take time. You cannot give up now. If you abandon your resolutions, we urge you to lean into achieving your goals, no matter how hopeless it may seem. If you have already wandered off the path or abandoned it all together, we implore you to start your journey again. To those who have made no resolutions, it is not too late. Start now.

350 days of change and challenge await all of us.

Let’s make them count.