The Unogwaja cycling team writes: Today we want to tell you a story. The story is of a man named Zephaniah Papiso who resides in a small township just outside Lady Frere in the Eastern Cape. Zephaniah is a social worker who is also a pastor. On Tuesday, he saw the Unogwaja team stop at the end of the day and load bicycles to head back to Queenstown for the night.
When the team was loading the bicycles, three of the day bags were removed and put down. These day bags contain things that the cyclists would need on a daily basis as well as some sentimental and valuable items. After an exhausting day on the bicycle, the team accidentally left the bags behind. This was a fact that was only discovered when we arrived at Queen’s College. The disappointment was inevitable but we just accepted that the bags, along with their contents, were gone.
This morning as we drove back to our stop we were greeted by a beaming Zephaniah. He had seen the bags with us yesterday and saw them left behind, so he picked them up. He knew we would have to come past and so sat at the bus stop, in freezing cold, from 6am. The team were inspired by his actions and filled with spirit for the day. It was amazing. Zephaniah, thank you for once again proving that people are inherently good. You, my friend, are what’s right with this country.