The Miss SA Pageant, A Place Where Self-Belief And Opportunity Exist Alongside Each Other; The Journey Of Lalela Mswane
Life’s journey and dreams about futures often do not run according to expectations, but whether life takes you to a national stage or you are left struggling to cope, it is self-belief and self-love that can restore the balance. When this advice comes from a Top 10 finalist in the current Miss South Africa pageant, it is easy to be sceptical. However, when the finalist is Lalela Mswane, and she reveals that her journey involved being bullied and isolated during her school years because she was ‘ gangly, tall and thin,’ perceptions begin to change. Lalela acknowledges that treatment meted out to her during her school years left their mark. It took a change of environment to the campus of the University of Pretoria, new surroundings, and new peers to change things. “I now identify strongly with the quotation that says, ‘since the beginning of time you have had everything within you to achieve anything you want to. It was the world that convinced you that you did not.’ I wish I had heard