Sadly, my time with the Roodepoort Northsider has come to an end, and even though I’m not as good as Sam Smith when it comes to goodbyes, in the words of Andrea Bocelli, it is ‘time to say goodbye’.
After nearly a year and a half as a member of the Caxton Joburg West team, it has come time for me to take the next step in my career, which means I have to say farewell to the West Rand – but what a ride it’s been. I started out in the ‘big city’ in December 2017 as someone who had absolutely no idea what lay in wait for me, having lived in small towns my entire life.
Little did I realise that while Johannesburg is indeed the big city, Roodepoort was simply a small town disguised as a bustling suburb where everybody welcomed me with open arms. In my time at the Northsider, I have developed many relationships with community members, organisations, sports clubs, and others, who have not once looked down on me because of my youth, and instead looked me right in the eye and treated me with respect, for which I will forever be grateful.
While I definitely have heaps of stuff to learn, I have acquired invaluable experience in my time here, thanks to the wonderful team behind me in the Joburg West office. But, just as a student can’t learn everything he needs from only one textbook, I need to move on to a new publication that will teach this young dog some new tricks.
With that in mind, I will be joining the Knysna-Plett Herald, all the way down in the Western Cape on the beautiful Garden Route in May, bringing to an end my time here. Once again, thank you to every member of the community, every organisation, and every sports club with whom I’ve had the privilege of working.
