Hotfooting it on holiday (despite everything)

Thanks to the insistence of my wife, my feet are ready for a holiday. They are shiny and smooth and prepared for whatever my Birkenstocks throw at them. The alternative to having them attended to was that the coastal hamlet of Plett would be denied a sighting of my toes as I would have been forbidden from unleashing them on the world.

That having been said, I’m not confident that the rest of me is as holiday ready. Not only have I not lost those stubborn last 20kg to perfect my beach body, but my brain and heart aren’t quite there either.

December might be desperately needed, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t come as a bit of a shock that it’s finally here.

At day 433 since the launch of Operation Swords of Iron that followed Hamas’s 7 October invasion of southern Israel, it’s almost unimaginable that December has rolled around again. And that once again, South Africans, following the closure of schools, universities, and many businesses, are contemplating another summer holiday.

December 2023, a mere seven weeks from the day our world was upended, to some extent happened as though we were on autopilot. Holidays had likely been booked and paid for, and although there was unease about “living our best life” while some had been denied theirs. But it also made little sense to stay home. And so we went through the motions of the holiday as though suffering some sort of imposter syndrome.

We donned our Granadillas; built our Sun Ninjas; applied our protection factor 50; swam in the ocean. And then we came home.

Few posted their holiday “snaps” to Instagram. And few will think back on December 2023 with any form of fond nostalgia.

I know that we don’t.

A few weeks ago, I had a conversation with my son who lives in Israel. In the discussion, he told me about a family who had been displaced from the Gaza envelope. More than that, they suffered greatly through that day in October, fought for their lives, and although they survived, many of their friends didn’t. They haven’t been able to return home. So current is their feeling of loss, they are unable to say the words, “Chag sameach” (happy holiday) because the feeling of happiness remains elusive. And unrelatable.

Where this is perfectly understandable, there are others who have chosen a different route. Whether through purpose, faith, an instinct to survive, or through intentional determination, the paths to healing are many. As are the stories of resilience across Israel. Stories that astound and inspire us on the other side of the world.

There are many real justifications for a holiday, even at a time like this. Vacations are important for our health, for our family, for our relationships, and for the ability to survive and thrive another year on the frontlines of the battle.

As important is the recognition that we are sophisticated enough to live with different emotions. And that taking a break doesn’t mean that we care any less.

And so, this being my last column of 2024, I want to thank you for your amazing feedback over the year, for your support when I needed it, and for laughing alongside me when the haters tried to say their worst. I wish you a restorative break, and more importantly, that we’ll be able to have the strength to enjoy the place where our pedicured feet find us.