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The Unsung Heroes
“These often unsung heroes understand ... that poverty, disease and famine are just as deadly and destructive as earthquakes, hurricanes and tsunamis."
The Selves of Us
where our shared stories live
MaytheyholdupmirrorsforustotrulyseehowalllifeonthisbeautifulEarthisconnected.
— Tshego Khatri, The Selves of Us
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Even when you are surrounded by well-meaning people, grieving the loss of a loved one is the loneliest of experiences.Grief is a Desert — Tshego Khatri
Reader Reflections
Mirrors
Read something that moved you? Write back to it. 200 words. We publish the best.
“Wow! Such an insightful observation. Makes me look at poetry with different lenses too-Tsuna”
“Beautifully written. Wonderful insights.”
“Thank you for this powerful piece, Roy. It’s so easy to let sermons remain abstract ideas that stay comfortably in our heads. Highlighting the balance between 'reaching the heart' and driving actual systemic action is a vital reminder. We truly are at a tipping point, and connecting our spiritual faiths directly to environmental stewardship is overdue.”
“Hi Tshego, Impressive research and a very interesting, life-changing narrative. Disability lived experience! * Tales of resilience* Keep up the good work!”
Why Human Writing Still Matters
The internet is drowning in AI-generated content. Optimised for algorithms. Written for no one. We built this platform for a different kind of reader — one who is tired of celebrity noise, clickbait headlines, and words far removed from the realities of their own life.
Every piece on The Selves of Us is written by a human being who lived through something. Tshego Khatri sat in a rehabilitation centre in Southernwood and listened to Yolisa talk about learning to trust again after losing her sight. Roy Hewett spent 17¾ years in a principal's office watching South Africa from the inside. These are not content pieces. They are acts of witness.
You can tell the difference. So can we.
The Collective
Most Read
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Epiphany as I waited
Epiphany as I waited
This Week's Prompt
“What piece of yourself did you have to leave behind to survive something?”
— Tshego Khatri
Write Your MirrorRecent Reflections
“Wow! Such an insightful observation. Makes me look at poetry with different lenses too-Tsuna”
Anonymous
“Beautifully written. Wonderful insights.”
Anonymous
“Thank you for this powerful piece, Roy. It’s so easy to let sermons remain abstract ideas that stay comfortably in our heads. Highlighting the balance between 'reaching the heart' and driving actual systemic action is a vital reminder. We truly are at a tipping point, and connecting our spiritual faiths directly to environmental stewardship is overdue.”
Anonymous
The Ubuntu Pledge
“I am, because you are.”
Every time you read here, you hold up a mirror for someone else. Every mirror submitted is a letter back to humanity. This platform runs on that exchange.
Correspondence
Letters from
The Selves of Us
Not a newsletter. Correspondence. Tshego writes to you twice a month. Roy adds an editor's note. It arrives like a letter from someone who knows you.
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Ask anything. Find the piece that speaks to where you are right now. Keneilwe knows every story, every voice, every thread of healing in this archive.
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What has Tshego written about community in East London?
There are two pieces that go deep into East London community life — Beyond Sight visits REHAB in Southernwood where Yolisa, Shama and Mr Madliki are rebuilding their worlds, and Missing Sounds & Silent Worlds follows the Carel du Toit Centre. Both will change how you see your neighbours.