‘Wandering between two worlds, one dead,
The other powerless to be born,
With nowhere yet to rest my head.’
— Matthew Arnold
Nelson Mandela had all the options, but he chose to forgive. He was defeated when he entered a troubled world surrounded by adversities where even the truth runs away. Yet, he came out victorious and has retired as a hero. He is now lying in his bed. The end is waiting for him, but he doesn’t wait for it. Things are always different in the final moments. Not all real fighters die in the battlefields. The secret behind his survival and immortality is his acceptance of every one, no matter how different they are, his forgiveness when he had the upper hand, his timely abdication and choosing to live the rest of his life with his family.
Options are always stressful. To make the right decision at the right time creates dialectic for many decision-makers. There are always factors that affect any decision-making such as the environment and surrounding circumstances. What makes a difference at the end is that it is your decision. To be responsible in front of your people and take historic decisions, you will be judged first of all by history itself.
Between being powerful and courageous in taking decisions, there are wisdom and the right strategy.
Sometimes, the decision does not concern you directly, but it indirectly immortalises you.
Our idol here is the master of decisions!
“South Africans must recall the terrible past so that we can deal with it, forgiving where forgiveness is necessary but never forgetting,” Mandela once said.
After 27 years, he left his tiny prison cell to find that some minds are narrower than his cell and locked in their narrow ideas. Some were ready to die for lost causes, some were ready to take revenge and others were afraid of the unknown. Long years of apartheid petrified the hearts. A civil war was hovering in the air. Death could have been the answer, but Mandela or “Madiba” chose life, coexistence and tolerance. The safe transit option between two eras, “racial discrimination” and “democratisation” in the history of South Africa are what made Mandela present in the African memory until now. Even though many struggled with him, some of his comrades were imprisoned on Robben Island and others sacrificed their lives for their country, Mandela was the most prominent for many reasons.
One of these reasons was taking the hard decision during the difficult times and taking responsibility even though many opposed his decision. Despite the injustice against the indigenous people and the crimes some of them committed, the “whites” were not punished and until now they own their properties and farms. Mandela preferred to forgive and forget and start a new page.
Whether we agree or disagree with him, history will not change. Few can forgive and forget in such situations. The first inspirer of mankind was Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), when he told his enemies: “Go! You are all free!”
“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall,” Mandela had commented.
Heads of states visit him. His people are praying for him. He is in the minds of most people in our busy world. He may leave us soon, but we wish the black knight never departs.
Everyone is talking about his achievements, but he is resting in his bed, knowing that his message has been delivered.
The finish line is in front of him. Everyone is racing to reach and win. How could this 95-year-old reach it before everyone else? Jamal Al Shehhi is an Emirati writer.
