Welcome to Isiphenduka
"Isiphenduka" is a word in the Zulu language, one of South Africa's 11 official languages.
isiphenduka [isipʰenˈduːɠa] ← isi + phenduka
Present Tense of -phenduka (v/i.)
they are (now/already) turning
he is (now/already) turning
she is (now/already) turning
it is (now/already) turning
The Greek word "metanoia" is usually translated in the Bible as "repent".
It is (I am reliably informed) more helpfully translated as "change your mind" or "turn around".
The word "repent" implies that I am guilty of some wrongdoing, that I should feel sorry, that I should ask forgiveness, that I am unworthy. Sometimes that may be true.
"Turn around" asks me to look at things differently, to not pursue my chosen paths so relentlessly that there is little room for new directions or new insights. Perhaps most importantly turning around asks me to face all that I seek to avoid and perhaps escape from in myself, my memories, my life so far.
"Change your mind" is perhaps more of an invitation to risk a new way of seeing than a command to make a new decision.
That all sounds very serious, and it is. But it also isn't.
As I continue to grow up, things along the way feed me, challenge me, affirm me and move me on. When I get stuck in myself and my own little life there are things that help me to get unstuck. Some of them are worth sharing. Often the things that are most helpful to me are those that help me take myself a little less seriously.
This website is about sharing some of those things.
