Durban - It’s high time the tide turned.
This message from the beachfront is not aimed at the waves but rather at people’s attitudes towards the jewel of Durban’s attractions.
Vicky Ferreira and Lawry Holmes know all about its woes, spending long hours each day there running businesses in the food and beverage sector and surfing the waves respectively.
“Everybody is convinced that there’s raw sewage in the water every day and that you cannot swim. That’s false. I surf every day,” said Holmes, who admits the water has been terrible.
“But the last three months have seen major change,” and the sea is now “the cleanest since the floods”.
Ferreira added that people were too quick to film anything negative about the beachfront and post it on social media.
“What about buildings that have just been painted? The owner has spent money caring for it and making things better. Take a pic!” she implored.
Failure to take such a stance will simply lead to the attraction being lost forever, they believe.
Ferreira also worries about the effect of negativity on young people hungry for hope and opportunities.
She is proactive by sitting down with her hospitality interns and sharing her own story of struggle and persistence, and she plans to have other entrepreneurs tell them their stories and answer their questions.
“Listen to criticism,” she told three budding chefs from Coastland College’s Swinton Campus in Mobeni.
“You don’t always see what is happening in your business. One morning people complained that they didn’t want muffins, but egg and bacon. The next day I put egg and bacon on the menu.”
She often makes mistakes, but never the same one twice, and sees them as lessons.
“I cry quickly but when I have had enough (of crying), I move on and fix my mistakes and go on.”
She also told them the value of seeking experience rather than extra income during one’s career path.
“How do you juggle long hours and hard work with your family life?“ asked Yolanda Mncelu.
“My mom and dad come here to help me. That’s how I get time to spend with them,” Ferreira replied.
She plans to have other entrepreneurs come and address the interns regularly.
Today, her five outlets are spread from uMhlanga’s forest walk to the harbour mouth.
The interns came to Bean and Bistro in Mahatma Gandhi Road with dreams of one day setting up their own coffee shops.
However, the arrival of magnificent ocean liners across the road at the KZN Cruise Terminal elevated these dreams to a new level.
“I would like to work on ships and go overseas,” said Nompumelelo Precious Mbotho. Nobuhle Sithole said she shared her colleague’s new dream.
This week they were scheduled to go on board the MSC Orchestra.
“It’s so important to make young people have dreams, or they won’t be motivated to make a difference to their lives and their circumstances,” said Ferreira.
“The youth need to see opportunities.”
Not to mention applying brakes to negativity so that life can go on, and all hope is not swept away by the tide.
The Independent on Saturday