-
Foreword
- African Perspectives
- Chapter
- Additional Information
Foreword I found Bless Me Father an almost overpowering and emotionally draining read. This is a story of a rich, fascinating, but intermittently tragic life, told with scrupulous, graphic, and disturbing honesty. It is eminently readable and accessible, written as it is in a recognisably South African voice, which would nonetheless appeal to a much wider audience. It is part of our human nature to want to look through a window into another’s life, and here the window is crystal clear and the life well worth looking into. There are hidden depths to the story too. There is pattern, despite the lack of chronology in the arrangement. Mario’s intermittent hedonism and obsessiveness and his two failed marriages are surely directly related to his unhappy childhood, his consignment to Nazareth House and Boys’ Town, his abuse there, and subsequent traumas. Another pattern that is discernible is his gradual social and political awakening that issues in his lifechanging visit to the DRC, which so neatly frames the action. Mario was a child of apartheid South Africa, who, through his own sensibilities and experiences, ultimately transcended it. For me the most striking aspect of the book is the lack of bitterness displayed throughout, despite the writer’s exposure to so much violence and abuse of various kinds. His nature rises above it all, so that ultimately its message is positive, optimistic, and life affirming. Mario d’Offizi speaks in a fresh and uniquely South African voice about the harsh realities – as well as moments of great joy – of a real, authentic South African life. Mario Fernandez, Educator & Historian. B.A. (Hons) (English), B.A. (Hons) (History), M. Phil. (History Education), H.E.D. ...