Assorted Notes

TUESDAY, 21 MARCH 2017

I am part of a long tradition of people who packed up their belongings to seek salvation elsewhere, and in the process, in some cases, changing their names and learning to speak another language.

There was the migration from Europe to Southern Africa in the 1600s and 1700s, a slow drift eastwards from the Cape in the late 1700s and early 1800s, the Great Trek into the interior of South Africa in the 1830s, yet another migration out of Natal back to the interior, my family’s repeated up-and-move 150 years later, and finally my own personal migration to Northeast Asia in the late 1990s.

To add some colour to the thought, a few illustrations:

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TUESDAY, 7 MARCH 2017

I have agreements with people to be present at certain times in certain places to help people with their English studies. Other than that, I keep myself busy with four other activities: language study, other ways to make money, reading, and writing projects.

I can easily spend four to eight hours per day on each of these activities. Because there are only 24 hours in a day, I am forced to spend less time on things than I would prefer to, or less time than what I need to achieve certain goals.

FRIDAY, 17 MARCH 2017

I. The woman at my one school messed up, so my work permit can’t be issued in time. That means I will be on mandatory unpaid leave next week. Of course that’s terrible, but I also thought about what I can do in the extra time I will have because of it.

Then I thought: That money I would have earned next week is not free money – I would have paid for it with my time.

Naturally I need to buy a certain amount of money every month. For this purpose I have standing arrangements to spend a certain amount of my time to buy a fixed amount of money.

The thought also occurred to me that I don’t need the money I would have bought next week for something specific. I can, however, think of a few things I can do with the time I now won’t have to spend. Result: No problem.

II. Point I is an example of how you create your own perception, which then affects your reality. Instead of being upset about the money I would not be getting, I now consider the fact that it wouldn’t have been free money, and I now don’t need to spend any time to buy that money. And seeing that I need time more than I need money, I am happy.

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WEDNESDAY, 1 MARCH 2017

(1)

A professional tennis player retires at the age of 33. He did okay for himself. He could afford the mortgage on a three-bedroom house in an nice middle-class neighbourhood, and he could take care of his family.

He peaked when he was about 27 years old. He played in the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament, and the following week he reached his highest ranking ever: 52.

He had a good coach at school, and his parents spent a lot of money to develop his talent. He was a pretty good tennis player – nobody could deny that. But even at his best he was simply not good enough to break into the top 50.

(2)

A young boy has been taking art classes for three years. The classes aren’t cheap, so one evening the father asks if he could take a look at his son’s drawings. He takes his time, and pensively studies every piece of paper that is laid before him.

Then he puts the pictures down and tells his wife he is going to take a stroll in the garden. Would she like to join him, he asks.

Near the rose bushes the man expresses his shock and asks his wife what the heck is going on. Three years of art classes, and those sketches are the best their son can do?

His wife defends the child. Maybe he just doesn’t have the talent for art, she suggests.

“Okay,” her husband replies, “but couldn’t we have realised that two years ago?”

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Examples of tennis players who have played professional tennis for more than a decade, and who have won few or no titles (but who have still made a decent living):

Stephane Robert’s career as a professional tennis player started in 2001. After 16 years, the highest ranking he has reached is number 50. Until the time of writing, he has not won any titles. Total prize money: $2,109,805.

Guillermo Garcia Lopez has been playing professional tennis for 15 years. His highest rank was 23. He has won five titles so far. Total prize money: $7,162,298.

Konstantin Kravchuk has been playing pro tennis since 2004. Highest ranking: 78. Titles: None. Total prize money: $878,386.

Victor Estrella Burgos has been playing since 2002. Highest ranking: 43. Titles: 3. Total prize money: $1,772,334.

Then you get to the pinnacle of success: Roger Federer. His career as a professional player started in 1998. The highest ranking he has reached was number one. He has won 91 titles, including 18 grand slams. Total prize money won: $103,990,195.

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MONDAY, 13 FEBRUARY 2017

This morning I watched a program titled Heart of Taiko, about the traditional Japanese drum. The program follows three Malay-Japanese teenage girls who had established a taiko group in Penang. They are invited to attend a workshop at a legendary manufacturer of taiko drums in Japan. They meet three of the country’s top female players, who will teach them technique and correct conduct. At the end of the few days it is expected of the group of teenagers to perform with the Japanese professionals in front of a select audience.

The younger of the three Japanese drummers take the lead in the young students’ training. She is critical from the start. The girls don’t play together. They show a lack of commitment. She gives them packs of magazines wrapped in paper to practice on, and she wonders the next day why the packs are not in shreds. She looks at their hands. Why are they not bruised? Why are there no blisters? She takes them to a windy beach where they have to stand with their legs apart while holding heavy drumsticks above their heads as they scream something. This while a strong wind is blowing at them. They do okay, but still leave their instructor unimpressed.

The next day they go to a monastery to meditate – they sit quietly on pillows, staring at a white wall. After the session, one girl describes it as a very helpful experience. She says she learned that you have to be fully present in the moment.

They go back to the training centre. They train harder.

The following day they again play their drums for their teacher – the young, professional taiko master. This time she smiles. They still make a lot of mistakes, she says. There’s a lot they still have to learn. But, and this she says with great satisfaction – she could see more dedication in their eyes. She also sees it in their arm movements, the arms being lifted high and brought down hard on the drum skin. And their screams were loud and full of energy.

And they learn: Technical mistakes are one thing; we work on them. Everybody makes mistakes at the beginning. Mistakes can be forgiven. What is unforgivable, what is in fact a great embarrassment to all concerned, is lack of dedication.

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SUNDAY, 5 FEBRUARY 2017

If I had been happy in Stellenbosch in 1994 and ’95, happy in Korea in 1996 but especially ’97 and ’98, happy in Johannesburg in 1998, and happy in Taiwan in my first few years – and with happiness I mean more money, initially, and later also regular female companionship, I wouldn’t have produced as much text as I ended up producing.

To write had for a long time been a mechanism for me to cope with loneliness, stress and boredom. It was only since 2003 that I seriously started thinking of myself as a writer who may have something to say. I had spoken and written about my ambition to write before 2003, but I think if I had experienced more sensory happiness in the middle to late nineties and the early years of the new decade, my ambitions to write would have faded.

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