By Destine Nde
THROUGH the ages, people have wondered and debated whether there is a Supernatural force which controls natural and apparently random events.
In fact, this is still a great enigma to many people today: whether things happen on purpose or randomly, whether they were fated to happen in the way in which they happened, or just happened by chance.
For this reason, it is natural and common for people to ask the question: “Why?” This is a profound issue — all of science, indeed human civilization as a whole, is built on this question. “Why did so and so happen?”
Asking “why” is indeed unavoidable, inevitable, and humanly indispensable; for, if you come to think of it, there will be no new discovery, in fact no knowledge at all, and hence there will be no progress, without this curious, enquiring, aetiological tendency of ours.
/////////////
“Why did it happen?”, Willowmore is asking. Every inhabitant of this Klein Karoo town in the Eastern Cape has been compelled to ask this question by the fatal accident which occurred there on 21 August 2024.
Around 5 pm on this fateful Sunday, the tranquillity of this peaceful town was shattered by the sirens of ambulances and law enforcement vehicles rushing to the spot on the N9 where the deadly accident had just happened. Two bakkies had collided with one another – an old Isuzu 2.5 and a fairly new Ford Ranger. Two of the occupants were declared dead on the spot, while the surviving three were rushed to the hospital.
The driver of the Ford Ranger, Johnny Boesak, who had just retired from teaching a few months ago, was one of the two people who died. He was alone in his vehicle, and it was smashed terribly.
There were four people in the Isuzu bakkie. The driver was Mzukisi Banev, also known as Mzuto, an industrious and enterprising middle-aged man — in fact a civil servant, farmer and entrepreneur. He survived the accident and is recovering well. Next to him in the cab was Anthony Gallant, also middle-aged,and a detective in the South African Police Service. He too survived, and is recovering.
In the back of the Isuzu were two young boys. One of them was Jeofrey Witbooi. He fell off and received a cracking impact on his head. Indeed the impact was so great that he was unconscious for almost eight days in the ICU in the local hospital. However, he is now conscious and is slowly recovering in Livingston Hospital in Port Elizabeth. He is 16 years old, and a grade 8 learner in Willowmore Secondary School.
The other teenager in die back of the Isuzu was Wange Winston-Norton Horbanie, and also the second of the two who died on the scene. He was only 17 years old, and a grade 9 learner in Willowmore Secondary School. He left two older sisters, a younger brother and his mother behind.
According to Sebastian April, popularly known as Baksteen, a neighbour and close friend of both boys, Wange was a friendly, joyful, peaceful and interesting person. “It was nice to be around him,” Baksteen declared, shaking his head mournfully. Indeed all the other members of the community share these sentiments, that he was a loveable person and that it was delightful to be in his company.
A procession of learners, led by the head boy and head girl.
The unquestionable truth of this statement was confirmed beyond all doubts at his funeral. The entire school, and almost the entire Willowmore, turned up to pay him their last respects. In fact, every single chair in the school hall was, for the first time I have seen it, occupied.
There were so many cars that the police had to stop traffic temporarily to let the convoy proceed undisturbed to the burial site. Tears were shed profusely by both young and old: women and children wept bitterly, men heaved heavy and painful sighs. It was, however, nice indeed to see such solidarity, such mutual love and support for one another in Willowmore.
This young, handsome boy had aspirations of becoming a civil engineer, and like his mentor Mzuto showed a great interest in farming. He and Jeofrey were “best buddies”. One could scarcely be seen without the other. Acxording to Devon de Villiers, Head Boy of Willowmore Secondary School, Wange’s best known saying was:’It’s OK to fall down, but never OK to stay down.”
//////////////////
Why did it happen? When answers to such questions can be found, we learn and build on the knowledge; when they cannot be found, we surrender them to God and move on. The latter is the case in Willowmore, as was made exceedingly clear during the funeral service by the speakers.
“God is in control,” asserted the Pastor. “Three is the number of perfection. We drove through that gate three times before the accident occurred. It was certainly God’s plan for it to happen.”
“We don’t know why, but we know that He has a plan for each of us,” said Gallant.
“God knows exactly why He took away Wange and Meneer Boesak, and not the three of us,” said Mzuto.
Even the family members of both deceased have refused to blame anyone, declaring only that it was meant to happen, according to God’s infallible plan and timing.
“Why did it happen?” Willowmore cannot answer, but she has surrendered the matter to God.