Moore Beats

Week 2 Trying to see over the mountain

Up, down; left, right. This seems to be the progression of our community partnership with the Upstart group and the Yung Amplified Radio Show this week. I would have preferred a linear progression but at least this week has been a learning curve for me. What have I learnt? One- Nothing goes the way you want it (it’s life Nadia, deal with it) and Two- People have lives and are either as busy if not more than you. Hard facts, but true.

Tuesday this week was meant to be my Media Studies reading day. Tuesday was meant to see me sitting the whole day in my pyjamas, cup of coffee in hand and the readings in my lap. But Tuesday saw me running around the Journalism Department (as usual- Stephen, a fellow radio student has even called me a piece of the AMM’s furniture!), scooting off into the township and auditioning pupils for the Yung Amplified radio show. My Media Studies readings? They were at home, in my bed where I should have been.

My day was not at all wasted though! But at the back of my buzzing head, I kept thinking that this project is starting to take a lot more of my time than I thought it would. I find myself constantly wanting things to go to perfection, but ‘perfect’ is not what I think this project is at all about. It’s more about constantly learning and working with a team of youth who are keen and willing to learn as much as we are from them.

On the Tuesday workshop with the Upstart group, myself and BK (another classmate of mine) met Zandi Shireen Badat’s intern for Upstart and a pair of twins volunteering from Germany, who are helping for the week with Upstart. They were all great! Zandi handles the pupils and workshops in the afternoons or during their breaks. She works really well with them yet she is also firm with them if need be and then it is all back to mentoring and basically just having a good time with them while learning and interacting.

Evidence of this good relationship between her and these Upstarters was apparent when Zandi encouraged the pupils to go forward and audition for a chance to be in Yung Amplified radio show. A short and energetic boy, Luthando, with a megawatt smile and confidence engulfing all those near him, marched to the stage, swung round, grinned at Beketele and I then proceeded to tell us about why we should pick him for the Yung Amplified show. Zandi then asked him to give us a demonstration of his acting skills (as he mentioned he enjoyed acting) and he turned around, took a piece of chalk, looked sternly at the class and asked them, “do you know how to spell ‘South’!” The class, Zandi, BK and I roared with laughter as he grinned even wider knowing that he had us all from the moment he flashed us that memorable smile.

(Luthando in the recent Upstart paper! Download the recent paper by clicking here)

BK and I chose Luthando as one of our finalists for the show, yet when the chosen six Upstart members arrived today for the workshop we were holding for the new team, Luthano was not amongst them. I learned (as mentioned in my previous blog post) that the final decision does not actually lie in our hands but that we are working in partnership with organisations that have been established for a while already. Yes, they need our contribution and help but they know full well that we need them too. On my side though, I have realised that I need to acknowledge that quickly and adapt to situations that might be out of my control. I still miss Luthando’s smile and energy, but I’m sure I will see him involved one way or another with this project.

The challenges are quite a few at this point. They range from Mike (my classmate) trying to get myself and him a PDP license to drive the children around, to not being able to meet the anchors of the Yung Amplified radio show. The challenges might be daunting, but we are progressing too! Today (25^th February 2012) we had our first workshop session with our Upstart group- they are: Sinovuyo, Anesipho, Roche’, Thobani, Anelisa and Ziphozihle. The presentation went quite well and we had a few interacting items such as the ice-breaker and the in-studio practice with them. I felt a bit discouraged that they didn’t have as many questions as I would have liked and they seemed very nervous, but hopefully we will knock those walls down and feel comfortable around each other.

Plans for next week and thereafter? Gosh, they are never-ending plans! But I have decided to take week by week and one item at a time. For now, this week was a relative success and I am so grateful that my team and I all pulled through with the workshop and the preparation needed for it. Below is an idea if the plans we are still working on:

We need to rework our proposal as Jeanne (our lecturer) has made it clear that we might be too over-ambitious with what we expect from the Upstarters.
We need to organise transport for the Upstarters.
The first show needs a sort of theme and we need to do that ASAP!
I would like to meet Shireen and the team a bit more often.
The running of and maintenece of the Upstart radio show website.

I am now looking forward to when these challenges will start resembling something smaller than the size of a mountain, but after having met these Upstarters and working so closely with my team, I will prevail until my next blog post! (We hope!)

Nadia

*Below are images from the Saturday workshop we had with the Upstart members.