14 September 2013: On Route between Upington and Calvinia.
We left Upington early that morning to go to our next destination. Here are some photo’s taken along the way…
On route between Kenhardt and Brandvlei
The aim of this vacation for me was to take as many photo’s of landscapes and flowers as possible. So when we saw something interesting we stopped got our camera’s and took photo’s. Even dad was shouting from the back seat to stop he saw something…
We are like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. We are all unique and have our own special place in the puzzle of the universe. Without each of us the puzzle is incomplete
Tyd is soos ‘n rivier. Jy kan nie dieselfde water twee maal aanraak nie, want die stroom wat verby is, kom nooit weer by jou verby nie. Mag jy vandag oorspoel word met die mooiste tye, die mooiste mense en die mooiste dinge.
I just had to share this beautiful garden with you. Last year October my bride got dressed here. Her mom and I visited the Guesthouse a week before the wedding… I just took a few photo’s of the garden for planning purposes.
On 1 December 2014 my aunt turned 79 and I took her and my mom to Aspidistra for some cake and tea.
She has Alzheimers and for the first time we saw with our own eyes how bad it has become. She can’t remember things that happened a few hours back. It’s heartbreaking to think that she was once a very vibrant and funny lady. She danced on tables, told stories and always made one laugh with her remarks.
She was a bit depressed when she woke up and did not want to go. You see they were busy moving into a smaller flat and she just could not deal with it. So what better place to visit than Aspidistra Nursery. I told her to get dressed I am taking her out for her birthday.
She was quiet the whole way to Aspidistra I asked her a few times if she’s okay she just said yes I am looking at the all the houses in my time it was farms… When we got to Aspidistra and she saw all the plants and ornaments she was like a child in a candy store did not know where to look next. We showed her to the little coffee shop and she smiled the whole time and that made me very happy. I told the lady that it’s my Aunts birthday and when our tea came she had some flowers on her tray. We had the most delicious Milk Tart and Carrot cake Muffins.
After tea and Muffins we took a walk through part of the nursery and when she said she was tired we headed home…
For me that morning will always be special. Even though she don’t remember a thing of it I at least have photo’s of her at my favorite nursery….
Aspidistra is for sale. Here is a link to a video made by Scott McNaughton of Harcourts. If you are the lucky prospective owner of Aspidistra please just mention that you saw his advert here on my blog.
My favourite nursery is for sale…. Aspidistra is the brainchild of Willie Schmidt a well known presenter of Pasella and Espresso. Whenever I need inspiration I always go to Aspidistra. I am always blown away by the ideas and all the different uses of old utensils, tins, pots, pans well anything really. Willie will find some useful meaning for it in the garden or home.
Scott McNaughton of Harcourts contacted me and informed me that Aspidistra is for sale. Please find a video and the information pamphlet Scott send me. It’s a honor to have the privilege to help spread the news of Aspidistra’s sale. If you are creative love nature and are looking for a home and business in one here is your chance. Please phone Scott if you are interested. Please also tell him that you got the information from my blog….
Here is a link to a video that Willies property broker send me that he made of the premises for sale.
I went to visit the Brakkies Club one Tuesday to take some photo’s for their facebook page so that I can breath some life into it. Some of the photographs will also be displayed on the schools website. Trudie Badenhorst their coach/instructor is a wonderful woman. She loves all her kids here at the club. She is very strict when it comes to training. You must have discipline to do this sport. It takes hours of practice and practice and practice. While I was observing Mrs Trudie teaching them I realized that allot of what they learn in their training I also do while taking photographs. With lots and lots of practice it will come to you naturally.
The club does not only consist of Brackenfell High School students. Pupils from other schools are also welcome to join the club. They also have a special spot for primary school pupils.
Here are some collages I made of the photo’s I took.
Getting ready for practice
The new shots had their first competition on Saturday 14 March 2015. Here Mrs Trudie explain to them how it will work and what they can expect. For their first competition they only do the prone position. Practicing Prone position The older shots practicing their kneel and standing positions The new shots also did some training in the kneeling position Here Mrs Trudie explains to the shots the importance of trial/test shots. Here Mrs Trudie demonstrates to the New shots the standing position. Standing is the most difficult position to master but with tons of practice and the use of Mrs Trudie’s advice you will be just fine… On a Tuesday Mrs Trudie has 3 classes. The second one is for primary school learners. Must say we have some great shots here. Air Pistol Shooting also have a spot in the club. The Third group of the day is High school shots again.
Last year I had the pleasure to capture a wedding at St Anthony Chapel in the Valley. What a beautiful little Chapel and the surroundings is ideal for some rustic wedding photo’s…
The story of St Anthony in the Valley. 10 December 1999
The year 1997 was financially a low point in the history of the farm. The vineyards needed to be replanted with better cultivars. Some of the farm equipment had to be replaced. I then made a promise to God that if I succeeded in selling a portion of the farm, I would use some of the money to build a chapel for the community. In December 1997 a portion of the farm was sold.
Part of the chapel was an existing building, dating from the early 1960’s. The building was originally used as a dairy and at one stage as a house. In 1980 I realised the farm staff needed a hall/meeting place and we changed this building into a community hall. It was used for religious and other community purposes, at one stage even as a crèche and afterwards a clinic. Today this building has been altered, extended and is now the chapel.
The chapel is dedicated to my late parents, Pieter & Inah Visser, who taught us children to respect every one else, their religion, their beliefs and their “mens wees’. The two windows at the entrance are dedicated to our family lines. The “wheat window” representing the bread or the Body of Christ in the Eucharist is dedicated to my mother’s side, the Jordaan’s. They were wheat farmers in the Bredasdorp area. The “grape window” representing the wine or the Blood of Christ in the Eucharist is dedicated to my father’s side, the Visser’s. They were wine farmers in the Stellenbosch area.
The tabernacle doors are made from Oregon pine. This wood comes from the original interior window shutters of the farmhouse (Villeria) which was on the portion that I sold. The altar top is made from solid Burmese teak. This wood comes from a huge vat that stood outside the Nagenoeg house. When I was a child it was used to store our drinking water. The same wood was used for the 14 Stations of the Cross (which represent the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem), the cross section of the crucifix, the shelves for the statues and the hymn notice board. No explanation is needed for the two wine vats at the altar. This is a wine farm and my father was a trained cooper, and Jesus’ first miracle was changing water into wine at Canaan, at a wedding feast. Wine plays a big roll in Christianity and in the Bible. Each year on St Vincent’s day we have a blessing of the harvest. He is the patron saint of wine growers and his feast day is on 21 January.
During my pilgrimage in September 1999, I bought the St Anthony’s statue in Fatima, Portugal. His feast day is 13 June. He is the Patron Saint, not only of Portugal but also of lost causes and couples. In the chapel there are two statues of Our Lady, namely, Our Lady of Fatima and Our Lady of Lourdes, France. Both are very special places for me. I visited these places firstly as a non-Catholic in 1989 and then as a Catholic in 1999. The small “Sacred Heart” has a long history. When my father bought Villeria in 1963, the statue was left behind by the previous owners. I have always kept it with me wherever I moved. It now has found its rightful place in St Anthony’s. The Crucifix figure was bought in Oberammergau, Germany where the Passion Play is performed once every 10 years. The olive wood Sacred Heart was bought by me in Shepherd’s Field outside Bethlehem in Israel as well as the Crusader’s Cross (also known as the Jerusalem Cross), which hangs above St Anthony’s statue in the back of the chapel above the doors.
Most of the other articles in the chapel have been donated by various people. There are too many names to mention them all. I would like to say once again thank you to everyone for their generosity.
Different denominations, mostly through staff members, use the chapel. Sometimes there is up to three or four church services on a Sunday. On the 4 December 1999, His Grace, the Archbishop of Cape Town, Lawrence Henry blessed the chapel. In his sermon he mentioned that he would like the chapel to become a place of pilgrimage for all the people from the Cape Town area. Today the chapel and community hall are used very frequently for retreats, not only Catholic but many other religious denominations from all over the Western Cape.
As you can see everything has its special God given place in St Anthony and in my life.
I would like to thank God for all these privileges. I am truly blessed.
Schalk W Visser
082 414 8333 or beesting@mweb.co.za
The money that we receive for the weddings will help pay the school fees and school clothes for the children from the workers on the farm.
This year will be the third birthday of the Sunshine Festival held in aid of Alta du Toit Aftercare Centre. This will also be my third year involved with this festival and I am proud to say that I’ll be their photographer for the day.
On 18 February 2015 they had their media launch at Eaglevlei Wine Estate and also the home off the festival for this year. The festival will take place on 28 March 2015. I am so looking forward to this. It’s one of my photography highlights every year.
Success is not to be measured by the position someone has reached in life, but the obstacles he has overcome while trying to succeed. Booker T Washington
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