In the story 'When Only Today Matters', the corporate lawyer who sacrifices his career and eventually his family, is based on a personal experience as a volunteer on Christmas Day at the Wayside Chapel in Sydney’s Kings Cross.
The journey of Rebecca in ‘Shadow of the Flat Top Mountain’ is a reflection on real-life trauma under the apartheid regime in South Africa, the way I remember it.
The eight stories chosen for this collection were shaped by my personal journey. While it always started with a picture, the human truth element came from a place of gratitude or a sense that tomorrow may be a better day.
The stories with a whisper of hope include the teenage boy who challenges his father’s recollection of history, and the goatherd’s encounter in the desert with two women praying together in spite of a deep religious divide.
Then there are stories fuelled by injustice and frustration. The student activist whose crime was the colour of his skin, or the young man forced to fight a war he didn’t believe in, far from home.
We have chosen to include my first poem, ‘Hear my Heart Whisper’ to close the book. The poem recalls a childhood in a remote farming community.
Homelessness, Religion, Identity, Racial Discrimination, Apartheid, Injustice, Hope, Aussie Tales
About The Author
Johan du Toit grew up in a remote community eight hours drive from Cape Town in South Africa. He immigrated to Australia with his family in 1994.
Through membership of a writers’ group Johan found an opportunity to write short fiction. His two collections, Meandering Road and When Only Today Matters have been published in collaboration with Broadcast Books.
The eight stories chosen for When Only Today Matters were shaped by Johan’s personal journey. The human truth element came from a place of gratitude or a sense that tomorrow may be a better day.
There are stories fuelled by injustice and frustration, others with a whisper of hope.
