I was in Johannesburg, South Africa when I saw these boys walking, talking, and clearly enjoying each other’s company. Their friendship was obvious and that made me so happy because of the ugly past of this country. Racism is alive and well all over the world, I’ve experienced it in other countries and didn’t know what to expect in south Africa.  I was struck by the image of these different race children hanging out together because it was just a short time ago that apartheid ended and during that dark time in South African history, Black and White children weren’t allowed to play together, let alone go to school together.  I actually stopped and talked to them for a few minutes, I asked them if they had any idea about apartheid and they said, “Well, we know it happened but it doesn’t really matter to us. It’s not like that anymore.” Amazing. Not even 20 years had past and these kids hadn’t been touched by the hatred of such a horrible time. I walked away from these boys smiling and truly happy.

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