General Information

Whether you’re preparing for a cosy winter fire or stoking up for a braai, what the northern hemisphere calls a BBQ — readiness is everything. Not just for the season ahead, but for these stormy geopolitical times we all navigate together.

As a South African living in Malta for fifteen years, I find myself in a uniquely fortunate position: straddling two worlds, two seasons, and two remarkable traditions of freedom. And in April, both of my homes pause to honour exactly that.

Malta: Freedom Day, 31 March.
In 1979, the last British forces departed the ancient islands. After centuries of foreign rule, Malta reclaimed its full sovereignty – not with war, but with quiet, determined dignity.

South Africa: Freedom Day, 27 April.
In 1994, the ballot opened to every South African for the first time. Long queues formed before dawn – people waiting hours for a right most of the world has long taken for granted.

Global: Workers Day, 01 May.
From Cape Town to Valletta and every city in-between. Workers Day honours those who laboured so that dignity, fair wages, and safe conditions could become rights rather than privileges.

Two small nations. Two very different stories. Yet both arrived at the same hard-won destination. And it makes me wonder: what does freedom actually mean, day to day, for the people who carry it?

Then, just days later, the world adds a third note to the chord: 1 May — International Workers Day. It is easy to overlook it between the two freedom days, but it belongs in the same conversation. The freedom to vote means little if the freedom to earn a fair living, to work in dignity, and to provide for your family remains out of reach. Workers Day reminds us that political freedom and economic freedom are two sides of the same fire.

What I consistently hear, from friends in Valletta and Johannesburg, from expats and locals alike, is something quietly universal: the right to self-govern, to provide for the people you love, and to do so without fear. Not grand political theory. Just that. The ability to make your own choices and protect your own circle.

Readiness, then, is not a military concept. It’s a personal one. Readiness is the braai that brings the family together. It’s the fire laid before the cold arrives. It’s the passport renewed, the savings set aside, the conversation had, the plan made. It’s knowing that when the season turns, and it always does, you have something solid to stand on.

So, wherever you are in the world this April and May, whether you’re raising a toast to freedom, honouring the workers who built the world we live in, or simply tending your fire – I’d love to hear what this season means to you. Write to us. Let’s connect across these latitudes, these seasons, these fires –  real and metaphorical.