In Search of Liberation
by
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Rumblings of Revolt
When I started this manuscript, I set out to put history straight. So I thought at least. I went in search of our real family name and true origins, and in the process realized that I first had to locate my paternal great grandfather who had mysteriously disappeared between
For some strange reason, the responsibility fell on my shoulders, just like the old wardrobe to try and figure out what had really happened in our family. Of course no one knows anymore whom the treasure chest belongs to. Does it belong to the pirates or the true owners now? It seems though, as if history is determined to set me straight. Yet I am determined to resist, like an old tree which the strongest winds or rain as well as scorching sunshine makes more and more crooked as time passes.
Like the old milk-wood tree in
“Oh tree, life-founder, you heard the sun
summon you from the dark womb of earth
at your life’s first awakening; your height
raised from rhythm less rock
the first hymn to the light; you brought feeling to harsh
impassive desert. …. when celestial dancing –nymphs shook
their bracelets in the clouds, shattering
those misty cups to rain down freshening
nectar, you filled therewith your vessels
of leaf and flower to cloth..."
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About the Book
"In Search of Liberation" describes the life of Emerald, growing up under Apartheid (60's-70's). First she sets off searching for her real roots which dates back to colonial times and the slave trade. She lives mostly on the "bright side" but soon discovers some mysteries while everyone thought she "had no sense of time" and her father called her "a walking disaster". Despite the almost idyllic environment that surrounds her, she soon discovers that there is always a snake in paradise. From small she tries to make sense of whispered conversations by the grown-ups and by the way she discovers a terrible family secret which is revealed in the book. She discovers some of her grandparents, but the identity of one, Abdul Ebrahim Hassan, remains shrouded in mystery. She reflects on some personal experiences of parental oppression at home and at school that leads initially to rebellion and later conscientization when reaching University in
About the Author
The author was born in a small semi-autonomous mission station, Friemersheim, in the Cape Province of South Africa. She attended Primary school in her village and completed her Senior Secondary Certificate (i.e. A-levels) at Esselen Park High School (Worcester, Cape Province) in 1972. After following a Course in BA Social Work/Sociology (University of the Western Cape (1973-76), she worked at Belhar Senior High School teaching English and Vocational Guidance till 1979. Later she worked as Community Worker on the Cape Flats, before going into exile in September 1980. While doing a Foundation Course she also assisted in a Community Work project (Ethnic Community Centre "The Hub") with children with learning difficulties in Sheffield. Subsequently she obtained a BA Honours Degree in Sociology and Political Theory at the University of Sheffield(1984). Afterwards she moved to Thessalonica, Greece due to marriage. After studying Modern Greek, in order to communicate better, she started teaching English and Sociology at City College of Higher Education. After the birth of her son, Hector, she returned to the UK in order to complete a Masters degree in International Politics. Afterwards she taught European Studies at the British Council for a spell. Presently she is still living and working free-lance in Greece, including Creative writing, translation and editing of academic publications in English (UK. and America).