Cedric Singleton

Today I felt my heart fall from the place were it has rested all my life. Leaving the Cape Town airport I noticed to the side of the road some shacks. I exited the M2 The freeway and found my way to this place to get a closer look. When I made it to the place I witness from the freeway I read a sign that said welcome to Crossroads. This was not the first township I have visited. The day before I went to one named Langa as a part of tour. We visited a small 2 bedroom apartment in a project like building. 16 people lived there, no bathroom. I felt a little guilty I was a tourist stealing glimpses of a world. I would soon be leaving and these people probably would never leave this condition. When the tour was coming to a close the guide pointed out a section of Langa that she would not venture. She lived in Langa yet she would not go into this certain area. I had see what was there. The next day, I found my way back to Langa to see for myself. The guide had shown us the better part of Langa. This part was occupied by shabby shacks. They were built of tin, wood, card board, plastic, rocks and ever else they could find. They had no running water, no electricity and it smelled of sewage. There they stood hundreds of shacks no bigger than the smallest bedroom in my house. Some tilted to the point they might collapse at any moment. The first thing that ran through my mind was people can't be living like this, not in the richest country in Africa. Less than 10 miles from here, I witnessed beautiful beaches and mountains with splendid homes on cliffs guarding the ocean. How could this be? I returned to my hotel a few miles away with this situation dominating my mind. The next day we need to change our airline tickets. This is when we saw the other townships. What I thought was one township, turned out be many. They had names like Khaylitsha, Kuwait, Nonqubela, and Nyanga. Most of them were far worst than what I had seen the day before. I reached the top of an over pass which allowed me to see for a few miles. What I saw, broke my heart. There were thousands of shacks, as far as I could see. Whenever I reached something that broke my line of sight, I hoped I had reached the end of this display of poverty. I was disappointed to find, I had not. I drove though township after township. The children I encountered, surprisingly had not been beaten down by their circumstance. Their spirits and smiles shined brighter than the African sun. I wondered how long would it be, before the reality of their situation snuffs out these beacons. As returned to the freeway, my head and heart were more fractured than before. Why? What is wrong with us? Why are all the slums, townships, ghettos that I seen full of black faces? How did this happen? Who is at fault? What can be done to fix this? Are they aware of how bad they are living? Could things be worst? What can I do? What can we do? Do we really even care? Why has their lack of hope affected me like this? Where is God? Africa the beautiful, Africa the ugly. In 2007, after God, family first and being more punctual are my resolutions. My goals are to visit Africa, start construction on my house, run a marathon and to learn to speak Spanish. I see every moment of my life, from the first breath I took to the last one I take as a gift. I realize its good to appreciate the sunshine as it falls upon us. To recognize the good in our lives not just the bad. Acknowledging those that we love and the ones who love us. No matter what I face in this life, failure, pain, loss and even victory, I promise to never to let it to change my heart in a bad way. I want to live with an open heart. When I have fallen I've gotten up every time, always will - Ironheart. God is good. I am one of the most adventurous people you will meet. There is not much I don..t like to do. Even though I look serois I am like that when I need to be. Other than that I am going to have fun. I love almost all sports basketball, track, football, boxing; XBOX skiing, travel, motorcycles, boats, jetskis, scuba, fishing, camping, RVing, cruises, you name it. I am never bored. There is alway something do. I love to travel. There is so much I want to see and do. You only live once, so live. I am a fan of the Miami Heat, The Kings, Steelers, Eagles, Raiders, THE OHIO STATE BUCKEYES (I grew up in Columbus, Ohio) SF Giants - Bonds keep bangin em out the park.I am 6..0 tall and an athletic 200lbs.People think I am lying when I tell them, I..ve never smoked weed. "You work in the entertainment biz and don..t get high, yeah right." I try to watch what I eat? I love seafood, all of it, including Sushi.I work in the entertainment business music and film. I love what I do. I am working on the release of my first film entitled "GREEDY" Check out the websites for the films and music:WWW.BLACKMARKETFILMS.NET WWW.DABLACKMARKET.COMPlaces I've been South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, Swaziland, Mozambique, United Arab Emerites - Dubai, Senegal, Haiti, St. Lucia, Honduras, France, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Holland, Spain, Austria, The Check Republic, Slovakia, Brazil, Hungary, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Martinique, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Virgin Islands, Barbados, Vatican City, Monaco, United Kingdom, Antigua, Aruba, Mexico, Canada