Poet's dream becomes a reality

Early last month this paper carried a story of a young poet whose wish was to meet South Africa's first citizen, Pres Cyril Ramaphosa, and to recite a poem he had penned in honour of the politician.

The other wish of well-known local poet Lutendo Mugagadeli (28), better known as Vendaboy Poet, is to be the president's praise singer.

The story reached a well-known airline, British Airways, who decided to give the president a surprise and make the poet's dream a reality.

British Airways then arranged for the poet to meet the president. Vendaboy boarded a flight from Durban to Johannesburg, seated next to and talking with the president. Vendaboy said he could not believe his ears when a message came through that he was to meet his idol.

"Firstly, it was my first time to board a plane and the first time to sit next to the president, chatting to him all the way from Durban to Johannesburg. This will always be the best day of my life and a highlight in my career as a poet. Just imagine being seated next to the president of the country, touching on different topics. I still can't believe it happened to me and this day will remain in my mind for the rest of my life," he said.

Vendaboy said their talk was casual and they spoke about different topics, such as his poetry and other issues. He further indicated that the president was a very humble person who had also thanked and encouraged him to continue with his poetry.

"When I indicated my wish to be his praise singer, he told me that I should leave my details with his spokesperson, as he was the one who dealt with such matters. I am very excited as, last year in May, I had a vision of reciting about and praising him. That was before he became the president of the ANC and the country. It is now like my vision is bearing fruit and my dream will become a reality," said Vendaboy.

He further thanked British Airways and Limpopo Mirror for making his dream a reality. "Had it not been for this newspaper that published my wish, British Airways would not have known about me. You built me and now that I am invited to perform at big functions, many are finally taking me very seriously.”

Date:14 May 2018

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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