Radiant's blog

We woke up to terrifying gunshots. I made a beeline for the floor as my mum had once told me, "when there is a shooting, lie flat on the ground". My heart was racing. I could hear it beat. We weren't sure how close they were. What the hell is happening? The shelling went on for ages. Fear and dread were palpable. We quietly climbed back to our beds after some hours of silence and slept half awake till dawn. Everyone hurried out of dorm in the morning to find out what had happened.  Armed robbers had visited the staff quarters. A teacher was shot in the eye. The military had exchanged fire with them, hence the numerous shots we heard over our heads. We were relieved but sad about our teacher. He had been taken to the hospital and we prayed desperately for him. What if the robbers had entered the dormitory? It wouldn't be the first time strangers appeared in our yard. Usually, it would be the peepers who preferred real pornographic scenes to fiction. 

Different words come to mind when you hear the name Nelson Mandela - Hero, Icon, Courage, Leader, Sacrifice, Freedom, Prison, President, South Africa and many more. _ Around the world, monuments, stadiums, bridges, roads, parks and gardens, restaurants and streets have been built or named after him. At least 8 movies that depict his story have been filmed. My best scene is always when he came out of prison holding his wife, Winnie, on the left, his right fist pumped in the ai r, with numerous freedom believers following behind. If you've not seen any, I'll recommend Winne Mandela or Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom. _ There are many positive lessons from the life of Madiba, as he is also called. He had his regrets as well. However, his life has been nothing short of inspirational and this is reflected in his words too. Here are my top 10+1 Nelson Mandela quotes: _ 1. "There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less