There isn’t any doubt in my mind that my brother has been the biggest influence on my life. Most of what I’ve done, what I do and what I like has largely been shaped by him in one form or another. When I look back, I don’t know if I would’ve got here without my brother.
My brother is everyone’s favourite flavour. He is one of those effortlessly cool people. He has a commanding presence. You can’t help but notice him when he walks into a room and not only that, he will leave you in awe once you’ve come into contact with him. He is a gentleman in every sense and moreover he is a real, authentic person and I think you’ll struggle to find anyone with a bad word to say about him.
As kids, I was in his shadow; I followed him everywhere and I liked it that way. He knew everything about everything, made the best jokes and had the best taste in sports, in music and just about everything else. You couldn’t convince me there was anything he wasn’t able to do and there was nothing he would say that I wouldn’t do. In a sense, I was a loyal disciple. I was devoted to him.
I often say that I was the luckiest kid in the world because while other kids wished to meet their heroes if only just once in their lives, I grew up with mine under the same roof.
But even with all of that, I figure he wanted me to be my own person and to do my own thing. For instance, I decided that I was going to be a Manchester United supporter because he was but he would have none of it and assigned me to Arsenal, who I still support to this day. TO THIS DAY!
We went to an all boys school and he was a star. That’s putting it mildly, actually. He was exceptional. In everything he did – without even trying. The similarities in apprarence and personality between us are undeniable. Add the dynamics of growing up in a small town and attending a traditional boys school and you inevitably get comparisons between two brothers and they began in earnest as soon as I walked in the front gates and I hated it. I was always expected to emulate him and if I fell short, I was ridiculed.
A funny thing happened the older I grew. I started becoming my own person… My brother left home to go to varsity on the other side of the country. I began figuring out what I liked for myself and exploring my own interests. And for the first time in my life, I had to stand on my own without the security of knowing that he would swoop in at a moment’s notice if I stumbled or fell. I had a deep yearning to write my own story and suddenly found myself wanting to be less and less like him just so I could stand apart…
I’ve heard people say he was the best rugby player they’ve seen and a professional cricketer once told me that they thought he had the goods play first class cricket. I didnt want that for myself. Instead, I chose to play hockey instead of rugby in winter because all my friends played the game (to so many people’s disappointment, including my parents’) and tennis in summer instead of cricket because I had better things to do on Saturdays instead of being out in the sun all day.
We were active kids, always playing outdoors and sport was an enormous part of our childhood. As much as I enjoyed catching, throwing, hitting and kicking balls, I discovered along the way in high school that I enjoyed talking about sport even more. If I had a spare moment in class or before assembly or at first or second break some or other sport was the topic of conversation…
I dont think I got bitten by the proverbial radio bug like anyone else and I think in my case it happened twice in my adolescence and once more the first time I was on air… I would spend countless hours with my older sister listening to the radio but only ever for the music. I never really cared for the DJs or what they’d say until my brother tuned into Algoa FM one day and I heard a sports bulletin for the first time. I can’t recall details or what day it was but I remember being astonished, excited and in disbelief listening to Derek Alberts on air talking about the thing I loved the most.
On a separate day, my brother came home with a boom box that he borrowed from a friend and an empty cassette. We recorded a silly show on a made up station that we called Radio Ballistic. I can’t remember what our show was about, but I reckon I can safely assume it was about sport. I loved it so much. While other kids wanted to be doctors or lawyers, I knew then that’s what I wanted to do, for the rest of my life, if possible. But I spent many parts of my youth ashamed because I had this dream no one else had. No one else I knew and could identify with had ever done it before, how could I possibly hope to be the first one to try?
If you ask anyone who has been in studio with me during one of my bulletins, they’ll tell you how much I light up when it’s my turn on the mic. I always do it with a smile on my face, even on my worst days, because I feel as excited as I was the first time I heard it being done. I feel a rush in my veins and all through my body when the mic goes on… I value freedom more than anything in the world and for the two and a half minutes I report on the latest sports news, I feel as free as I ever do. I am truly in love with it
Recently, during my December vacation, I reconnected with my best friend and his family after not having seen them for at least 7 years. They asked me what I was up to and what I do with my life these days. When I told them, my mate, his mom, dad and brother each in turn said they were not surprised and they always thought I would end up doing just that. On my drive back home I smiled to myself and thought back to our conversation and I thought there is no way I could have or would be doing any of this without my big brother.
I did not know how it could happen or that it was possible at all, but I am happy to say, finally, that I am where I’ve always wanted to be.
Mawandinho 