20th century boy

It was a part of Johannesburg I hadn’t been to for a while. I followed the GPS directions up Northcliff hill, under towering jacaranda trees that had painted the road purple-blue during the recent rains.

The road under the trees was still damp, with the occasional puddle scattered around low-lying corners. I took care to avoid these. Pot-holes lurked in their depths, like trolls under a bridge, waiting to ambush unsuspecting motorists.

I laughed at the analogy. Trolls. Updated for the 21^st century, available on every cellphone.

What was I doing? Driving to a random address because someone had scribbled it on a piece of paper and dropped on my desk? I would have pulled over and stopped, if the mountain road hadn’t been so narrow.

OK. Garth fell in front of a train. It happened. People tripped. Especially people like Garth. He’d probably had a few drinks. More than a few.

Coincidence. That’s all it was. Pure coincidence.

This time I laughed at myself. Silly old man. Probably still hungover from last night. Not thinking straight.

I glanced at the GPS app on my phone. Nearly there. I might as well complete the drive, see where the mystery man wanted me to go.

The last two hundred metres took me over a rise, Johannesburg’s skyline greeting me from the horizon. A lovely view, with the sun setting on my right.

Then I was there. “Your destination is on your left.” I had arrived much earlier than 7pm. The habits of a punctual lifetime.

I parked under a shady willow, wondering what I was supposed to do now.

Until the gate across the road drew back with a subdued rumble and Jenny pulled out of her driveway.

Latest in a series of emails sent to me by an old Valhalla drinking buddy. He couldn’t post them himself, for reasons that will become obvious over time. I’m publishing them here at his request, as I received them.

With libraries closing all over the world, and people isolating themselves, if you’re looking for something to read, you can download a free copy of Burning Roses this week, from the 19th to the 22nd of March. From anywhere except Amazon (different promotional rules). You’ll find most other online retailers here – https://books2read.com/b/BurningRoses .

Cheers.