Nelson Mandela is one of the greatest influences of my life. The visit to his prison cell on Robben Island a few years ago changed my life.
It hurt my heart to see a man as great as Nelson Mandela have to sleep on a cold floor for so many of his finest years.
It made me pause to stand in the limestone quarry where he would work in the dust (that damaged his lungs) and toil in the glare (that impaired his eyes).
It made me stop to see the courtyard where he would walk for exercise and the garden where the manuscript of his autobiography was hidden.
I learned of the wretched food he was given. The lack of privacy as he showered and the censored letters, designed to destroy his precious family.
And yet, through those 18 years on Robben Island (and for a total of 27 years in jail), he was always joking with fellow prisoners. He carried a smile. He stood upright. He kept his dignity. And he remained graceful…
…to the point where he chose to invite those who had imprisoned him to his inauguration as president of South Africa.
When asked why he did so, his reply was simple: “If I didn’t, I’d still be in prison.”
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