FEATURE
BRIGHT IDEAS
for load-shedding
Empower yourself I BY DR JONATHAN D MOCH
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A gas cylinder and wok pan make
great omelettes and scrambled eggs,
as well as other fabulous cuisine. So, I
can make believe I am a master chef
cooking a great breakfast for uber-rich
foreigners somewhere high in a Drakensberg cave.
I practise mindfulness exercises in
the dark, sitting quietly, watching my
breath, my thoughts and emotions, and
of course, listening to sounds that I never
hear when the lights are on.
During the day, I can potter around in
my backyard farms: watering, weeding, seeding, pruning and harvesting. (I
can also do this when there is a full moon
or with my head torch shining brightly on
the turnip leaves.)
From the harvest, I clean, cut and eat
fresh veggies such as beans, tomatoes, spinach, kale, bok choi, within minutes of them being alive in the soil. Topclass local, fresh, organic, seasonal salads.
What a health kick!
Without interruptions, I can listen and
speak to Shirra, my wife, and anyone
within talking distance. No distractions.
If the weather is cool, I go for a brisk
walk, and at night the stars are
brighter. I am prone then to contemplate
my reason for existence, which is fun and
humbling, once in a while.
It is a wonderful way to get to bed
earlier instead of Web surfing or
channel hopping till all hours. I then have
more energy to wake up to the natural
light of the sun rising!
And the power, miraculously, is back
on. Another day in Africa beckons. Loadshedding predicted – so bring it on, very
occasionally. Please, never at peak hour
traffic congestion. So, I am absolutely
convinced that mindset is critical to how
we react to everything – everything that
life throws at us. Our greatest freedom:
how we set our attitude, what we filter in
and out, and thus choose the best creative
response. And you? JL
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AS LOAD-SHEDDING IS PART OF THE PREMIUM WE
pay for living in South Africa, over the
past few weeks I decided to apply a
growth mindset to this challenge.
Firstly, I realised how ‘addicted’ I am to
electricity; how it powers all the comforts
my great-grandparents never knew, like
food preparation, ice in the fridge, hot
baths, lighting, computers, security gates
and alarm systems. This is an uncomfortable feeling of withdrawal, edginess, upping of the whinging volume, loss of control, and general frustration.
Then I turned to any means I could to
replace the electricity with battery or solar-powered energy. And finally, I focused
on activities that do not need man-made
energy resources.
14 JEWISH LIFE
ISSUE 82
So, here is my 10-point low-stress plan
for load-shedding that turns lemons into
lemonade (squeezed by hand, of course):
I make sure my iPad and cell phone
are well charged.
My wife purchased a miner-type
torch that fits neatly around my skull
and forehead, and is adjustable, so I can
read articles and books.
I also bought battery-charged lamps that
are placed in the kitchen and bathroom,
two pivotal spaces for functional living.
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Dr Jonathan Moch is a physician of over thirty years and has chosen psychiatry (over
forty thousand hours) as a window into understanding human potential. He is also a
published writer, international teacher, and urban farmer. His vision is to uplift people
by nudging them in a direction of a growth mindset, where anything can happen, and to
start something that matters.
PHOTOGRAPH: ILAN OSSENDRYVER
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