The Empowerer

First his father gave him Rolihlahla,

The ‘pulling branch of a tree’

Or the ‘trouble maker’.

He certainly troubled some.

 

When he became a man

They gave him Dalibunga,

‘Convenor of dialogue’.

But he did more than speak.

 

To many he is Khulu or Tata

The great one,

Father or grandfather of a nation.

A living symbol of transformation and hope.

 

Madiba is his clan and is synonymous with his shirts

It denotes from whom he is descended

When traced back two centuries

He was clearly not the first of his line to be followed.

 

He is known to most as Nelson

A name only received from his teacher

In a time when it was custom and convenience

To anglicise all Africans.

 

He has been called many things

Terrorist, Prisoner 46664, and even Mr President

All justified, for he struck fear into the unjust.

And, while imprisoned or in power,

Mandela empowered us all.