I took my first breath in 1972 in the small town of Paarl in the Boland. My dad was a teacher at HS van der Walt Girls’ High and our family also lived on the school grounds. I am blessed to still have both of my parents in my life, my dad Willie and mom Raché Swart, and also have two sisters, Lézl Potgieter and Raché Gerber. My brother Bennie was born 14 years after me. We had a wonderful childhood, of which many hours were spent under the jacaranda trees and playing in the vineyards. In 1980, just as I was about to start sub B (Grade 2), my family moved to Standerton. I found it very drab and flat, completely different to the beautiful Paarl that I was used to! At the end of standard nine (Grade 11), we moved yet again, this time to Heidelberg in the then Transvaal, where I completed my matric in 1990. Early in 1991, I left my parental home to spend a year at the SA Army Women’s College. Right through school it was my dream to attend this college and I also wanted to study ...