Gasant & Goosain 1935

Twin boys born on 12 September 1935 at No 56 Leeuwen street, Cape Town to Gamiedoen & Zubeida Emeran.

Gasant & Goosain were historical/traditional names for twins. Our mother's close friend, Daija Abrahams also had twins Gasant & Goosain about 12 years our senior.

(Daija’s husband’s nickname was King George.  He was a sarang at the docks.  Sis Kulsum (Kasu), Daija’s daughter was our first nanny.
- Goosain)

We were very active and very spoilt!  As twins we were treated differently – cos twins are special. And we were very naughty – and when we were naughty, we didn’t run into the house, we would climb into the trees ! 
- Gasant

We moved to Worcester Road (Walmer Estate) then Sachs Street, Cape Town.

My first memory was from Worcester Road.  We stayed in one room – we had those big zinc buckets they do washing in there.  My leg brushed against the bucket and it was so cold  - when I think about that I can still feel that cold feeling in my leg.
- Gasant

When we moved into our house in Sachs Street, a ginger cat moved in as well. This cat became the families pet. We also looked after and cared for around 20 chickens and we had about 30 pigeons, one named Wazir that was used in the war.

Achmat's friend owned Wazir and used it in the war. He gave it to us later.
- Gasant

We slept under the wasenstel - mirror with flat top with a kom – a ceramic bowl with a ceramic jug – used by midwife, 2 drawers on both sides open in the middle it stood on legs, we slept under there.  One chicken would lay her eggs under there with me.  We never bought eggs – mummy would make cakes, or the frikkadel with eggs in, all from our own eggs. 
- Goosain

We had African neighbours, who lived next door and downstairs.  We would fill these plastic bags with water, and as they walked in we would drop the bag, next to them !
- Gasant 

We didn’t always have electricity – we had candles, lamps, coal stoves.  The Josephs were the only people that had this contraption to make hot water - from the coal stove – into a chimney. 
- Goosain

We played all the street games at that time like kennetjie, bok bok, blikkies, marbles, skool-skool, weg stekentjies, throwing and catching a tennis/cricket ball over the electricity wire, street cricket and rugby. There was a man who would make bats that we would use to play cricket with. There was a field just opposite Goosain's house where we used to play rugby on.

We would also climb up in the quarry with our neighbour's children : Amina and Ebrahim. When I look at some of those places now, I can't believe how we could just clamber up.

- Gasant

During WW2 the Boere sided with Hitler - Vorster was put in jail – their apartheid ideology aligned with Hitler's race policy.  Some Boere fought on behalf of the British.  The military complex on top of Signal Hill had canons and the houses with the opening for the gun/canon – any boat coming could be shot.  That was our playground.  When they built that road to the noon gun – it was done quickly, so there was a lot of grit left over.  Every winter our house in Sachs street was flooded, because it was low down, so we would get grit and place it in front of the door.
During war time – at 12 o clock, you had to stop for a minute silence, in honour of the soldiers. War time lorries would bring food. Potatoes would be small, there would also be rice, flour, milk – had to queue. Military police would walk the streets, and you had to put black paper over the windows so that no light shines out, in case there are planes  - if they saw light they might bomb. They would knock if light was still visible.  We didn’t have black paper, but had the brown paper from the tailoring.  Every night we had to patch up the windows. 

1947 the Queen came just before the war, we were playing on Military road – by the quarry – that was near the store room for the armaments and explosives etc.  We found these things that we thought were skipping ropes : it looked like a worsie.  When you put it in your hand, your hand would heat it and then it would explode.  So Duimpie had blown off his thumb, Fingers, lost his fingers, one boy took this thing into his house into the coal stove – he hid it because the police were coming after him for taking it – it burnt the whole flats! 
- Goosain

During WWII we had to queue for milk, fruit etc. We would queue with the kids from St. Pauls when we weren’t there yet. The guy handing out milk wouldn’t know we weren’t there – we would come with our tin to get milk and then add it all together and we would have milk for the week.

- Gasant

In winter the rain would form a little lake in the quarry and we would collect the tadpoles and bring  them home, rear them until they were frogs.

- Goosain 

In those days the horse drawn carriages couldn’t come up Pentz Street – so they would come around and we would keep the back wheels so that they don’t slip.  We would also be naughty, the owner would be in the front, the waantjie would be heavily loaded so it tips back – so when he stops at certain places to sell, he would place two kusies to keep it level. We helped at the back and we would take fruit and vegetables and toss it down the road – then we would collect the goods and make food in the field by Jamiel Moffie – he became a cook on one of the boats.  He also used to make food for kifaayats, he learnt on the field when he was young. 
- Goosain 

High Level road – that area was full of goats.  One year, because the goats ate all the grass and the rocks would then loosen, all the goats were culled. 
- Goosain 

Childhood illnesses at the time included smallpox, pink eyes, help-my-krap.

Help my krap – translated as help me scratch, so named due to the extreme itching, one literally needed help to scratch. 

There would be an old dirty metal bucket containing condis crystals which was a dark purple.  You would have to dip your hands into the bucket and air dry it.  We would scare and chase the girls when we came home – they would call us the “blou hanne”.
 - Goosain

Toothache : we would use cloves with burnt wadding as a remedy 
- Goosain

Smallpox remedy : we would be covered with white flour and placed in a darkened room. 
- Goosain

We were a very happy and united family. Our house was always alive with our father's friends. They would play dominoes and kerem in the house. They would debate over political and religious issues. Our mother would serve our father’s friends with custard, canned fruit, tennis biscuits and tea. Our mother would also cook Bobotie with geel rys, bout and Christmas pudding.

Our parents weren’t strict, but expected us to do things that they said.

You had to play your own games.  If you didn’t come home at magrieb, they would hit you with the belt from the sewing machine.  And you must go wash your feet – cos they would be black from playing outside!!

We had to amuse ourselves, parents had other things to do, they would chat but madressa teachers taught you manners etc. We had to go play outside with the chickens and birds.

We wouldn’t always sit at the table – we were 18! 14 kids, parents, aunt and uncle. There wasn’t enough place – you got a piece of newspaper and had to sit on the floor, then tomorrow you may get a turn at the table. You also couldn’t get meat or potatoes everyday. We used to complain a lot, my mummy would dish, you couldn’t always compare like with rice, but if it was ertjie kos – we  would count the peas and and complain if one got more than the other. 
- Goosain

The only birthdays celebrated was 21st. There was a big homemade cake and drinks: homemade pineapple. You received just about 2 presents : a shirt or jersey. It was a very small affair. 
- Goosain 

I recall helping my father in the tailor room especially before Christmas and Eid days.
 - Goosain

My father was a tailor, he had many friends and they would come and sit and talk to him while he would be working. Kids wouldn’t be allowed in the company, but Goosain and I would have to take out the tacking  - we would hide under the table so that we could listen to what they spoke about.
 - Gasant  

Labarang we would eat the chicken, but my father didn’t like slaughtering it himself, so we took it to Achmat Dramat’s daddy in Lions Street, and he would slaughter for us. Even later we had the love for chickens – we took some to Salie Adams to slaughter. He had one of those big knives used to slaughter sheep. It was around magrieb time – Gasant had to hold the chickens while Salie cut – the chicken wasn’t moving so they put it one side and took the next chicken, after sometime they had left it to bleed out, as Gasant was about to pick up the chicken – it jumped up , other one crows!! Confused as the knife was so big. Instead of cutting the chickens neck he had cut its red comb on its head… which is where the blood came from.

Once in Outshoorn with Trafalgar, Salie was with but he just wouldn’t slaughter, so I was asked. That was the first sheep I ever slaughtered, its not so nice to slaughter a sheep, especially if you have looked after it. 

-Goosain

Dija was the best teacher that I can think of! She taught us the rhymes and how to read as well as mathematics.  She would teach us – so when we got to primary school – we were tops! Omar Gabier’s wife Beirie would beat us !  She didn’t go to high school though. 
- Gasant

We attended Schotcheskloof Primary School sub A, then we skipped standard 1, but standard 1 & 2 were together. Standard 3, we went to St. Paul's Primary school up to Standard 6. We would always either be 1st, 2nd or 3rd in academics.

When we got to St Paul's, we were miles above the others. If the teacher wanted to do the attendance at the end of the quarter then 3 of us would add it up on the board. The way we read – the std 6 teacher would call us to come and read to the other guys. When it came to church, we didn’t go to church, we were in charge of the food, we would prepare the things.

The discipline between the 2 schools was night and day, anything can go at St Paul's.
 - Gasant

We used the windows to do our homework , the condensation, especially in winter, we would write out our sums, multiplication, division, improper fractions,  spelling – when one window was full we would move on to the next then the next – by the time we returned to the first was ready again. We played skool-skool outside – one would be the teacher with a stick and the others the student –  we used a piece of stone as chalk and kids had to spell and write in the road. 
- Goosain 

As part of the school feeding scheme we would get fruit, vegetables, cheese and cod liver oil daily. Sometimes we would be sent to St Paul's (when we attended Schotcheskloof) to collect the grapes and fruit, as the lorry would leave it there. On our way back to school we would already eat some of the carrots and grapes.
Each child had to have a mug for the daily milk, ours was handmade from a tin of jam or condensed milk. If you had the big tin it wouldn't be filled, but the smaller one would be, so it was always better to have the smaller tin. This mug would be clipped through the loop on your pants.

At school we had stick pens with a nib that would be dipped into the ink to write with. The ink was made with a powder added to water in a tin with a lid and thin spout. We would be very naughty and try to see if the hair of the girl sitting in front of us could reach into the ink pot, or we would dip our pen into the ink and streak her hair.

We had many visitors who did Ratiep. We would show them at St Paul's. They were totally puzzled.

Every morning at school there would be a health inspection : nails, hands, elbows, ears, teeth, behind your knees, shoes, are you dressed properly and checked for lice. You would be whacked with a cane if anything was unsatisfactory.

Education was very racist, our book in Sub A referred to blacks as kaffirs, but whites would be Oom and Tante.
At St. Paul's, the reverend told us we were going to learn a new version of the Lord's Prayer - OUR father was changed to THE father. I objected to that and after being called rude and disrespectful, I was sent to the principal's (Mr Potter) office for the first time.  Mr Potter knew this was just a political ploy and didn't punish me.
 - Goosain

There was Sunday school in the mornings and while everyone was eating koeksisters, we would go to the steps and this lady would give us lollipops, balloons and other stuff to eat. We would have to sing and she would tell us stories about Prophets.

St pauls built the christian flats (in Upper Bloem street).  St pauls was built in a predominanatly muslim area  the idea being that the kids running around should be educated. Sunday school was mostly muslim children  - they thought they would be able to convert the kids to Christianity. 
- Goosain

We had a nice relationship with the Christians in the area – when the Boere came for the opening of parliament, they would come, stop at the monument station, come to the muslim tailor with his cloth and material for a dress for his wife. They would come before the time of course, my aunty  would make her dress, but she couldn’t make a hat – Muslims could never make a hat, but the Christian ladies, they were the milliners, they had a shop in Adderley street making hats, so my aunty would cut a piece of cloth for the hat and send it to that lady.
-Goosain

We wouldn’t lock our houses,  our neighbours had a nail that was used to keep the door closed.
-Goosain

We were the only people with a fridge in that road, and it was always  full of jelly and ice. When the men that worked on the trawlers, they would bring us all kinds of fish, crayfish, pikkewyn eiers.  Most of the Christians that worked on the docks, in the trawlers were poor. 
- Goosain

Everyone could come and put ice blocks in our fridge. Later the girls  (younger sisters) would dye the ice blocks and sell them.  All the trawlers  would come for the suits or pants to be made or adjusted, so they always gave us crayfish, fish etc. That time if you didn’t have something, you would go to the neighbour and get a bit on a piece of wax paper.
 - Gasant

The nag teams had a special uniform on at night, during a the day a suit with a hat. The Christmas choir would also be immaculately dressed.  Reverend Gow from America – started church near Holy Cross, he wanted the coons, but Dr Abdurahman and others didn’t want to be coons – so organized that the Muslim tailors boycott making uniforms for the coons.  There was one group of coons called the Bits and Pieces – they would take all the leftover fabric from all the other teams and pin it over them, loose pieces hanging all over. Most of the poor belonged to this bits and pieces group. Then Dr Abdurahman formed the nag teams – immaculated dressed, so that they were not looked at like coons with black faces etc.  They played all the hymns, had all the best musicians, immaculated dressed – but the muslims were the tailors.  The Christians walked from xmas to new years eve, and muslims  walked from New years  until 3^rd of Jan, so there  was no clash – the Muslims didn’t have musicians – so the Christians would be the musicians and the muslims would then offer to make them a blazer and pants. At first the nag teams had a stick – in case of problems with the coons as a weapon, but there wasn’t any problems but then it became a cane used to hit the ground to give a beat.

- Goosain 

Our parents we strict and insisted we attend our homework and go to madressa.
The first madressa we attended was Pang Gafiel Alexander in Pepper Street.
Next we went to Loader street to Boeta Amien Ria. Chiapinni street always had hooligans so we had to go up to August street, over the hill to High level road, across Strand street then across the cemetary to get to Loader Street.  If we didn't know our work, Boeta Amien would chase us with a sambok around the table.

Boeta Amien Ria was a very fierce man, but I think he was just trying to scare us, he didn't actually want to hit us. He had a good system, I only learnt 2 or 3 juz by him, but after that I was able to read the entire Quran
 - Goosain

We also did koples. Koples was when we had to write down the rules of Islam and arqaans, all in Afrikaans.

For a short time we also went to Sheikh Gammatjie in Dorp Street. He was fond of the falaka - they would tie your feet with two sticks and a rope then hit the soles of your feet.
We would go to my father's sister (Sies Tiemie) in Bryant street from there we would go to madressa. The wife of the Galiefa, Sies Jawaya would say "Gaan koep gou die tammeletjies(coloured with coconut)", then we would have to sell it in the streets for her. In summer she would make ice blocks, but that was hard to sell as it would melt in the heat before you could take it to people. She would also ask us to sweep her yard
.
Today kids don't do things like that. I think Sheikh Abadi still used that system - the boys learning hifdh with him would be asked to help in the garden during their break 
- Goosain

When a boy completed the Quran, not memorizing but having read from cover to cover, it was called tamat. The boy would be dressed up and walk with the Quran in his hands, with two strooijonkers next to him to the mosque and he would be asked to recite.
 - Goosain

My earliest memories are of going to West End bioscope in Buitengracht street and watching cowboys films and the serials. 
 - Goosain.

I enjoyed playing with my kite and catapault. I also enjoyed going to the movies.  My father couldn’t afford to send us to bioscope, he made the suit of the usher and when it is dark he would get us in. We would also go to the White bioscope illegally and sit in the operators room.
-Goosain

 In those days before the movie started we had to sing “ God save our gracious king”.

 My favourite movies :
Maria Montez, John Hall and Sabu. Later in high school it was French movies : Bicycle thieves, Les Miserables as well as Indian classics : Aan, Daag, Mother India.
 - Goosain

Primary school principals only passed standard 6.  Boeta Hashiem Edross was a  very good principal only passed standard 6 but that was good enough to run a school.  Very few people went to high school. Females who are now around 80, there is a very high possibility that they didn’t go to matric because of the attitude of our parents : meisises moet gaan werk. They can’t go to high school only the boys can go.

-Goosain 

We attended Trafalgar High School, the first high school for people of colour. Established 1912, Harold Cressy was the first principal. We studied English, Afrikaans, Mathematics, Physical Science, Biology, Geography and Latin.  What really struck us at High school – was so many Christians – all these strange new names. Even though St Pauls was a church school – it was mostly muslims.

We were known at High School cos we were tops. We were good in PT – the gymnastic stuff.

If you did athletics you needed spikes – if you didn’t have, you had to run barefeet and the track had those small klippetjies! 

I loved Biology but I had to give it up in std 8 – I took science and latin.  Latin helped me with English – there wasn’t a word I couldn’t spell and we would take out these books at the library. 

I was the only one who got an A for latin in matric ! 

 - Gasant

I was very good in maths and science. I enjoyed playing chess and I was also a relay sprinter.
 - Goosain

I was very shy. I was a bookworm. My favourite books include :
And quiet flows the Don by Mikhail Sholokov
Oblomov by Goncharov
An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
Fontamara by Ignacio Silone
War & Peace  and  Anna Karenna by Tolstoy
Maths for the million by Hogben
Charles Dickens and Shakespeare.
- Goosain

How I would study latin : there was a street light opposite our house but there was a tree growing which blocked the light – so I would climb the tree to be above the branches so that the light could shine on my book.   
- Gasant

One day I was sitting under the street light studying geography and Mr Hammer was our teacher. I was always very neat. Exams would be in summer- if you study in summer you don’t see the little biggie that get killed when you turn the pages, so the pages would have specks of squashed bugs, blood marks. Mr Hammer scolded me for having a dirty book !
 - Goosain

When we walked to  Trafalgar via Pentz street – our friend Cassiem Amier would live there  and his mother wouldn’t let us come from school without popping in and having something to eat.  They were butcher people with the softest meat I ever ate. We called her Maamie Amier.  Cassiem knew music, Richard Taaba, he would sing as we walked.  We would also go over our Latin conjugations as we walked. 
- Goosain 

We walked from our house to Buitengracht street  to Cassiem Amier's house, we walked up to the gardens, we would go to the library  - we would do our conjugations, declensions. Cassiem was good orally, but in the exams he would struggle. He went to university with us. 
- Gasant

In our teens and early twenties, we played and organized club cricket for the "Victorians Team" and rugby for the "Yokshire Lads".

Christians wouldn’t allow muslims to play in their rugby leagues.  If they wanted to play in that union, they had to change their names to hide that they were Muslim. 

Basil Dollavera lived in BoKaap, a very good cricketer but instead of playing for any of these Muslim cricket teams in the area, his father took him to St Augustines in Retreat.
 - Goosain 

Gasant

I started teaching in 1959.

I did Physics, chemistry, maths – I did a teaching course – I learnt a lot, but as far as teaching is concerned I learned nothing.

We had these ladies from Mowbray who taught us how to write on a board – they wrote so neatly. “op leintjies dun, af leintjies duk” But they knew nothing about statistics, so we taught them statistics.

We went to the common room and there was a gym and you climb the rope up to the ceiling.

Before we came there was very few coloureds. And you would seldom see them – they mostly did BA. But our year – there were 30 from Trafalgar, 12 from Livingston,  10 from Worcester – so it was a massive group and most of us did science.

There used to be a south lab and a north lab for chemistry – say the north lab, traditionally the best guys came from there – when we came we switched it around!

Medicine students also had to do chemistry – but they had a watered down version. We would also spend a lot more time in the lab than them so we would help them.

Our lecturer would pick on us after our group turned out to be smarter than the other group. So one day I boiled some water – it had to be boiled in a particular container. I boiled it in a different container over the burner and while he was picking on us this thing boiled over and he got a shock! He was a racists so my classmates were all supporting me !

Bellville started in 1961 – so they (lecturers) all moved that side.

I got a 30 pound scholarship so my father didn’t have to pay for my studies.

We made a lot of changes at the varsity.

Every year they would have inter-faith week, but there would never be a muslim speaker before we came : protestants, roman catholics, rationalist, atheist.

We decided to get someone – but most of the sheikhs only spoke Afrikaans or they didn’t speak properly, Sheikh Booley could speak English so we asked him.

Madina café in sir lowry road – a political party wanted  Mr Perdu – but no one knew him – he explained Qul huallau Ahad – every word.  They wanted Mr Perdu, but we already booked Sh Booley. So they decided they would hijack Sh Booley – not harm him. They were politicians – Boeta Matie was also one of them (Salie Bassadien’s brother) – eventually they changed it to Sheikh Booley.

When the Catholics or protestants spoke there would be maybe 30 people and they used this small hall.

But for Sheikh Booley they used the new science theatre – holds a couple of thousand people – the venue was prop vol!! Ouside too! And more were coming – we had to set up speakers in the common room for the extra people. I couldn’t get into the hall I had to stand in the street and direct the people. He got a standing ovation for 10 min – this was the first time a Muslim addressed them at the university. Later on I found out he spoke about the 5 pillars of islam ! These people had never heard of this before. They wanted to to organize something else another evening – so we got ratiep!

All my science and maths profs sat in front of me in the common room watching this !

One of the students (a non-muslim) also got up and tried it – I was shocked. I went over to one of the guys and he said the saal was stomp!  But if you feel it is was sharp !

They never experienced anything like that before.

Then one Sunday morning they wanted to go with – there were a few das/talks on and again we had to find someone who could speak English. So we went toBbuitengracht street by sh Ismail. I was a bit shy. I stood by rocksole and then took them in  - My pure maths prof came to me afterwards – this was the first time he had someone address him that wasn’t standing up but sitting  - not talking down to us, but sitting amongst us and allowing to ask questions.

The next year there was no inter-faith week!

Goosain was also instrumental – there was a guy from Rhodesia – we knew nothing about tennis.

This guy was a kwaai tennis player. We knew nothing about tennis but played him and Goosain won ! So  he asked if we entered for the Rag.

The Rag was just white. He insisted we must enter. I am the champion and you beat me !

Boere had to make changes for the first time ! (I can’t recall the rest)

Gerald Holmes – was at Livingston – chess club. Goosain beat Gerald Holmes – he became champion of SA. They had to change so that Gerald could take part in Rag as well.

We would listen to classical music at the music dept. We would go to city hall Saturday/Sunday evenings to listen – if you don’t want to pay then you must sit under the balcony.

When I started teaching we would take a bus from the station, it had a set route but from 8am it changed to Wetton. And the first part of the bus was only for whites. There was a driver and a conductor.  But this route was only a school bus but the conductor (portugese guy) wouldn’t let us sit by the white side. The bus would be full of children from claremont.  We tried to explain to him this bus is crammed. We went to the police – the next day the policeman explained to him and we were allowed to be on.

 When we came to university there were a lot of Muslims and you had the support , the previous guys were the lone muslim/coloured. You are a product of your environment and your education . Cos they weren’t in an Islamic environment. We strengthened each other especially after establishing MYM.

Muslim Youth Movement – we organized the biggest political event in the drill hall – 1960s – the hall was full of different political parties. PAC, ANC etc. You couldn’t get in. Every week sunday at the banqueting hall we would have meetings – always full!

We made a lot of changes 1960 -1970

 We stopped cos the special branch was after us, this guy who studied by Sheikh Booley re-started it in Durban.

Marriage:

Salma was a pupil at Oaklands – she only passed Std 8 – that was high, JC – you could become a teacher. I never taught her, but I met her there.

I was 28 when we met – I am 10 yrs older than her. She stayed in Watson street Claremont. 

Quotes:
"All that happened made me who I am".

Message to the youth :

I said I first wanted to become a doctor - one day I took my aunt to Dr Simon – they say he was a coloured, but he practised as a white. The old people would always keep their money in a hankerchief – each corner had some coins for a different payment – when we got there – I assumed he would examine her – but the first thing he did was ask for payment ! She was ill and struggled to open the knots to get the money – that day I decided I don’t want to be a doctor rather an advocate.

My father was a tailor – he made suits and we had to take it away – Sea point, bantry bay : 3 of us – twins and Achmat. We had to carry it over the arm with a damp cloth over the suit – one day we had to take it to observatory with the bus. We had to wait for the white guy cos he wouldn’t allow us to come to his house  - but while waiting the police would chase us away for loitering (there was a no loitering law) – we also couldn’t argue or explain to them – so we would walk down a bit and then back – and I thought if I have to be an advocate THESE are the laws I would have to apply ! So I decided against that as well.

The only other option was teaching. 

As an educationalist – my professors didn’t teach my anything, my students taught me, but how did they teach me ?  I went to the library in wale street for 3 years  anyone could go  - afterwards coloureds weren’t allowed. I took out old matric papers for 10 – 15 years. I studied them and for each subject: science, maths  - electrochem,  I had compiled ALL the questions that had been asked over that time period. But that time we used typewriters so it was a lot of work and rolling off – fortunately sheikh Abdurraghiem Sallie's (of chiappini street) sons came to my school. So after I typed on particular stencils – he rolled it off for me.

So when I taught – if a student got 10%, I knew my lesson wasn’t a success (but no one ever got 10%!)  If they all got 75% - I made a good job – so they taught me how to teach. When I became principal – 1976 (took a holiday to Europe and Mecca) . They never wanted to make a maths or science teacher a principal -  cos then he would be lost as a teacher. The group of principals- didn’t make an impression on me ! It was completely different to what I had wanted to be as a principal.

They were like dictators but they knew nothing about education. Who comes first ? My pupils ! Then their parents, then the teachers, I come last, Some teachers didn’t like it . Some teachers were racist, in Ramadaan if I wore a fez or the girls wore a scarf or one girl had a nose ring they would comment and I had to explain to them that this was the culture of the people!  A lot of them didn't agree with me but I helped to change Oaklands.  As a teacher I didn’t come home at 3 – I would stay and prep my apparatus for the next day. As principal  I had all this admin  so I would take it home, so that I could teach more – I always taught more than the teachers.  When I must get forms from coloured affairs – I would send the caretaker from the school Mr Lemmetjies.  Teachers would comment about me lending my new brown Toyoto Corolla to him  - what do I gain for driving to fetch forms ? My secretary would do all she could do.

If you take things home – I had a special cabinet – we would get paid extra.

I think I had the right attitude.

A parent came to me one day – he  taught me something – he complained that one of the teachers scolded his youngest daughter  - all his other kids were cleverest in their years – she was scolded for not being as bright as them. He showed me his hand – he had thick hands, he was a builder or plasterer -  I didn't know what he was trying to show me but I just nodded and agreed. Then he said “ This thumb doesn’t do the same work as this finger,  and this finger doesn’t do the same work as the pinkie, so how can this teacher expect all my children to be the same when these 5 fingers don’t do the same work. 

I called the teacher in and demonstrated this again to him. I knew that the daughter was his youngest and a father has a soft soft for the youngest child,  However I knew the teacher didn’t have any kids of his own. So I said he should remember that all kids are different for one day when he has kids. I could see the parent soften. She might not be clever in these subjects but she might have other skills like cooking.

After dealing with the teacher, I turned to the parent and when he said he lives in claremont and I mentioned I was married to a lady from Claremont. He knew her father  and he cooled down.

So I had to use lots of tactics to help out the teachers and calm down the parents.

One teacher took a T-square and hit the child on the shoulder – the child went ot hospital. The parent came to complain he wanted to take the teacher to court.

I always put the other person first, I don’t put myself first.

I always tried to figure out why someone said something, perhaps based on his education.

If it wasn't for those(siblings) before me – we would never have reached what we reached. So I have a lot of respect for them I owe them a lot.

Those days were nice. I never had the idea everything must be like it was before – cos things change. The only constant in life is change. Without even thinking I lived my life with that philosophy.

You must be proactive not reactive – move with the times.

I had to change my ways – many people change unwilling – change must come and you must adapt to the changes.

Goosain

In those days, my uncle had a shop on the corner of Walestreet & Loop street, every afternoon, if we had time, we would fill the fish oil – from a big tin into bottles, and the monkey nuts – from a big sack into small brown kadoes. We also helped to sell The Guardian – my round was on the corner of Wale street and long street and the Hanover street bus would come up wale street – some people on the bus may also want a paper, so with 50 papers under my arm, I  would jump onto a moving bus, when it turned into Bree street I would jump off  again. The guard would allow it.

There was a bar on the corner of wale street and loop street, some Muslims would go in there to get schwepps, it was a special bottle under pressure used to make juice, only sold at bottle stores.  We would go and take a deep breath before going in to sell to the drunk people inside.  We would take coins and hammer it so that it didn’t look nice, but it was still of value. So you would put the change on a tray and if they saw the damaged coin, they would give it to us as a tip.

When it was the municipal elections, we would stand  on the corner of Long street or Wale street , on the corner of Burg street and Wale street there was a fire brigade station, opposite was a police station , we would shout “Vote for Pienaar” “Vote for DuToit” – the whites up for municipal elections. They would pay my uncle and my uncle would pay us.

On a Saturday, we would go to the parade, we would help ladies with all their carrier bags to Tamboerskloof or Vredehoek and they would give us some money.

Fashion trends of our time  : open neck shirtwith cravat, suit with breast pocket hanky, Elvis Prestly hairstyle with brylcream, painting under your shoe especially when dancing.

I went to UCT to study after High School. Gasant got a scholarship and I got  in my second year after my excellent maths results: The Russels scholarship.   We were the first to go to university from the family. Since we were clever at school, we went to university. It wasn't common, there were maybe only 5 coloured people (1950s). Most of the people went for medicine as a doctor had status. I went in to teaching due to the influence of our galiefa. He always said if you teach others, you get the reward. Also, there were only 4 teachers at Scotcheskloof : the principal Mr Abdurahman, Teacher Majiet, Teacher Pandie and Mr Kleintjies, a non-muslim, which shows you there were not a lot of muslim teachers in those days. All the primary schools were church schools, and these schools wouldn’t employ Muslim women, so our women didn’t go in to teaching. However, Mr Allie of habibia, he was the principal, he started the muslim teachers association, with Mr Albertus in order to ensure the female muslim teachers could get a job.

When we went to high school  someone said to my father  - gaan jy nou die linge steur om Kris to word ? (As most schools were mission schools enforcing Christianity, the understanding was that if you sent your child to a non-Muslim school they would become Christian)  Mr Kies was the considered the  biggest shaytaan cos he was atheist, but he was not only a politician – he was THE politician.

When we went to varsity – Haji jy kan mos nie die jonk kinders steur na die varsity  dan gaan hulle nog science doen !  (science was one  considered one of the subjects that would lead you to atheism)  Hoekom doen  julle nie medicine nie, oufie samiese kind doen medicine.  The people who did  go to varsity before us , maybe one or 2, they did take alcohol  - even though  they came from good respectable families.  The became doctors, but lost their deen.

We were with the teachers league (educational arm of unity movement), under Ben Kies.

We would go to the corner of Roeland street and Plein street – there was a butcher and  next door was Tods Typewriting  - that was the headquarters. That was just opposite parliament !! We would come there  roll up The Torch ( the newspaper of the teachers league) in brown paper for postage.  We worked for Joe Rasool. They wouldn’t take part in any mass demonstrations  - their logo was we must educate the masses  - they would never take the people onto the streets .

During the holidays I worked at Ninham and Shand civilengineers, waiter at Grand Hotel in Muizenberg and various work at Goolam’s travel and Tours.

I was fortunate to travel to Mecca, UK, Spain, Turkey, France, Egypt, Mauritius and Mozambique.

Family holidays were spent at Faure Kramat, Klippetjies baai and Hangklip

The age gap was too wide so we never did anything together. We would go to the kramat, but not all of us at the same time. Sies Beira, Aunty Hajiera, Boeta Toyer Sies Gasiena,  lived in  the kramat. We would have a house known as the Grand, the most beautiful place there. Oemie Hajiera (from the Abrahams family) lived next door permanently. The grand was in 3 parts : one for the Soekers, one for the Josephs and one for the Abrahams. When we arrive it was late and dark then we have to walk up those steps, you can’t see the kramat – I would hear someone saying “Salaam alaykum kramat” – then I would just repeat, I don’t even know who the kramat is, I don’t see anyone either – but then I would say yes I greeted the kramat. After that – you have to go to the vlei – marshy  area on the one side of the river – to collect  kooigoed – it was long soft reeds, dry and brown – cut with a sickle – make a huge bundle and throw it on the floor , throw a sheet over and that’s your mattress.  Of course you also have to go and fetch clean water – as there wasn’t any running water. You couldn’t just go to any spot at the stream/river (kaalie) as the cows would be around – so you had to go up to the top where the water was pure. (This water is contaminated now) When collecting water – you don’t hold  the jug against the current – else you will get the muck as well – hold jug the other way and the muck flows past and you only get the pure/clean water. We also had to collect milk from the farmer.

When you arrive there were big gates ( since it was a farm) you get theses little urchins who would open the gates for you then you tip them.  As you approach and see the tuang you have to start reciting “ Salaam ………. “ ***clarify words

I got my first car when I had been teaching for 5 years, It cost me R450.

My first job was as a teacher and I earned R90 a month.

Our political views were radical and we were schooled by the Non-European Unity Movement.

The greatest world event that impacted my life was Apartheid as well as the war and postwar years.

Wars during my lifetime : The 2^nd world war, the wars in South America, Vietnam war, Isrealie wars.

I never knew about pocket money or even salary – it was handed over to my parents. Today the kids get their own money and give the parents what they think they deserve. We only got pocket money when we got engaged and then I got 10 pounds, which was a lot of money those days.  But we weren’t  always given the same amount. One day I asked my daddy why and he said “ You don’t know if one day you are going to be a rich man or a poor man  - I am teaching you how to live with a little and how to live with a lot”. I know now, that it because they didn’t have more than that. 

Marriage

I was 26 when I met Fatima. The first time I met Fatima was at a wedding near the Avalon bioscope.  Aunty Mariam Nordien (my cousin) was  married to Boeta Tullie, who was Fatima’s uncle. 

I was attracted to her smile and her beauty. Later I saw her at Trafalgar – she was  a student, I was a teacher, but I never taught her.

Attending wedding was the way you met girls back then,  you don’t sit at the wedding, only the females sit – after the reception you  look out for a girl and walk her home. We had to meet in secret. Once you were engaged you can  come into the house, but then you must kom with abdas and weg gaan met abds – cos you cant touch the girl.

 We got married when I was 29. Our first home was 30 Upper Bloem street and still is.   The house was built for us. Before having kids we enjoyed travelling. Fortuately we didn’t struggle financially.

Quotes:

“Perfection is a quality only of the Creator”

“Love is the ability to create the difference between one person and the rest of Humanity”

“Nemo dat quod non habet – You cannot give that which you do not have”

“Amor omnia vincit – Love conquers everything”

Message to the Youth

When I was young and my father would ask us to clean the yard, I wouldn’t just sweep the yard,  I would also hose it. If my mother asked me to weed the garden, I would also till the soil. Later on it life when I was a cricketer, and our captain said we must come to practice twice a week  we would go 3 time a week. At school ,  when Mr Edross would give us 5 sums for homework  we would do 10 !

My point is that we would always  do more than what  we are asked. But todays child is different, in every respect!

We had to fight with our sisters  to wash the dishes – because we WANT to wash the dishes. I still do the dishes, I wash, dry and pack away.  – I always do more.

We had to polish the passage and we used to use the  leftocver fabric from my father and wrap it over our feet  and we would dance as we polished the floor – it was shining and spotless when were we done – it was all part of play !  Today children don’t have that attitude anymore, they see it is as work! They don’t see they can do it in a playful way  and at the same time get some exercise  and some enjoyment.

When we were poor we had a simple life, but today families have more money –

The patience does not exist, the children want instant gratification. They want thing and they get it !  So we are to be blamed !!  They  live in a very unreal world – a sanitized world – they see only beauty and perfection in tv, and the shops and then they can’t cope in the real world with the real problems. – as a result they tun to drugs or divorce as they can’t cope.

They don’t respect elders, we had to call my eldest brother Boeta, we could call him Rashaad – else we would get a klap! Gallie Achamd etc.

We used to deabate and talk about EVERYTHING!! Politics, religion – today the kids don’t talk just tweet !!  Atheism, communism, Marxism would all be deabated.

The don’t show gratitude in the way we did. If we the trouser of an older brother or the sandshoes, we were so grateful. WE had 7-seater Plymouth, if we got a drive in it we were so grateful. If you don’t have gratitiude you have a negative attitude. WE had to show our gratitude it wasn’t just words – by looking after our things. WE didn’t have much so if you got something you were truly grateful.

Kids today are so impatient! They wasn’t things immediately! But if you ask them you have to wait and remind them over and over and they procrastinate and have excuses. Procrastination wastes a lot of time of your life. 

We became more opulent and educated. Our education gave us greater opulence and we would see what others (whites) have and we always looking there, never at those below us – and aiming there! As a result of the social thigns in our country – so we would always aspire to what the top people had.  Attitudes also changed.

In my father time, PE people would come to Cape Twona nd you could easily pick them out based on how they spoke and of course you know the regaulars so knew the strangers. My father would broing 3 or 4 people at a time home from Jumuah – they don’t stay with us but he would invite them for a meal. My mother would be ready – there always would be a lot of food. There was never a grumble or bad look from my mother. It was just a natural thing.  They would eat whatever there was.  If they stayed with you – it was open house, the house was small.

When poepl got married – the frontroom was given off to the newly married couple.

Now a days kids want their own room  and won’t allow siblings to study in the same room.

Our lives were so simple and happy.

Do kids actually enjoy school now or is it just habit ?


Being Twins

Gasant was in hospital. I went to visit him, I was in the corridor. The nurse saw me and said “ Mr Emeran what are you  doing here ? “

 “ No, I am sick and tired  of this hospital I am not going to stay here.:

 “ What did you do with the drip?”

 “I took it out “

” No Mr Emeran you can’t do that!"  - she was so aggitated  - “ you must come back” so I went back with her  and she saw Gasant lying there.!!

-Goosain

When we were young we would call older boys names and they would chase us and we would climb up the tree and they couldn’t come after us. Sometimes if they didn get us, they had a soft spot for twins, they would put us back to back and then ask which of us one at a time who insulted them and we would  each deny it – then they would be confused, then they would knock our heads together – when we were done we would run away calling them names again !

-Gasant

I was teaching at Oaklands, Goosain was doing another course at UCT – so he was busy with his practise teaching. He met toher people. I started teaching a year ahead of him. Nabeweyah and I would run from hom eot  the staion and we could only get in a black train. Nabeweya was always late, and we would have to run and run and when we got there they would blow a whistle – so we would jump on at the white side and they would allow us to walk through to the coloured side.  So one day we were running and another guy a white guy was following us ….. he came through to the black coaches and said “ Wow I nearly missed you, if I had missed you I wouldn’t know where this school is.” He mistook me for goosain – I immediately know he mistook for me for goosain, and I know Goosain was at Wittebome,  We went o Claremont so I told him to just stay on for the next stop.

-Gasant