My Name

Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa

Look what they have done to my name……..

the wonderful name of my great-great-grandmother

Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa

The burly bureaucrat was surprised

What he heard was music to his ears

‘Wat is daai, se nou weer?’

‘I am from Chief Daluxo Velayigodle of emalu podweni

And my name is Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa.’

Messia, help me !

My name is simple

And yet so meaningful

But to this man it is trash…..

He gives me a name

Convenient enough to answer his whim…..

I end up being

Maria…..

I…………..

Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa

by Magoleng wa Selepe

This poem was written in response to the Apartheid era in South Africa. The name “Nomgquibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa” is a isiXhosa name. The name is from emaMponweni – a isiXhosa clan in the Eastern Cape, and when said correctly it a beautiful and rhythmical name. In many African cultures, names are asked for and even prayed for. Often fathers go back to their hometown to announce the birth of their child to the elders and the ancestors and once the elders and ancestors have accepted the child into the family, the name is then only given to the child.

The name “Nomgquibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa” of great importance to the person as it was previously her great-great grandmother’s name. This shows that the name has great value as it forms part of her family history and shows how the family wished to continue the legacy of the name.

During Aprtheid, the white officials would ‘rename’ people of colour in order to make it easier as “Nomgquibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa” for example, was difficult for the white officials to pronounce. This took away the identity of these people and the meaning of their name was completely disregarded. The beauty in this name is compromised for the convenience of those who cannot pronounce the name correctly. The Burly Bureaucrat is a man who offers very little respect for this woman as he would just rather call her Maria: a name that is very meaningless to her. The white beaurocrat does only as he is told and so lacks emotional and intellectual abilities and thus a name is worthless and should rather be something that is convenient for him to say. The beuarocrat is unable to see that this name was given to her by her parents. It is a name that they had the right to choose and now it is being taken away in order to fit in accordance to the white preference and it is seen as “trash”.

Throughout my studies, it has been emphasized to us as students to treat our patients in a holistic manner. We are constantly reminded to look at the patient as a whole and to treat them in such a way in order to be able to get them functioning to their previous level in their specific environment.

In reality, we refer to our patients by their folder number and the notes within their file. We look at our patients according to the medical condition with which they present. We forget that outside of our cubicle they are normal human beings and not just a patient with a condition. Even within our cubicle, the patient is more than just a physical being, but also an emotional and intellectual being. I refer to patients based on their physical abilities. When it seems as if a patient is not listening to what I am trying to teach them I get despondent. I forget that my patient may be going through some other emotional issues that I am unaware of which could be hindering their performance.

I think we could change this by first asking our patients how they are doing in general as well as ask more specific questions regarding their home-life and their emotions. Physiotherapists should communicate with their patients in 3 ways: On a superficial level where you gather information about the patient’s work and hobbies, then on a deeper level to understand their ideas and how they think, and then on the deepest level which involves the patient’s emotions (Doring, 2014). We would then understand our patients better as a whole before focusing on their medical conditions. Not only would we have this better understanding of out patient, but it would assist us in providing better patient-specific treatment.

References: 

Doring, L. (2014). AN ELABORATION ON HOLISTIC PHYSIOTHERAPY. Australian Journal of Physiotherapy, 22(2), 83–89.

wa Selepe, M. (1988). My Name.