Thy Names are Hope, Love, and Faith

            If hope could manifest itself in the form of a woman, then her name would be Nadia. Nadia is French for hope, it dates back to Ancient Greek Mythology (“Nadia,” 2018). On the other hand, if hope decided to take a male form, he would call himself Thembi which is African for hope. This is the tale of how Nadia Prieur and Thembi Zwelethini meet, love, deal with personal battles, and vow to hold on to their special bond despite distance and the curse of time. The tale would not be complete without the help of their friends as unwitting accomplices in their love story.

Nadia grew up with her best friends Aimee and Foi in the Paris suburbs. They separated when they attended university and they finished school and started working around the same time. A mutual friend introduced the three ladies at work and they quickly realized that they knew each other. It did not take them long to realize how much they had in common as adult women. This friendship started in the fifth grade, but the three girls did not remember their initial meeting because they felt more like sisters connected at birth.

Aimee grew up a few blocks from Nadia in a single-parent household. Her mother, Carla, was a nurse at one of the largest hospitals. Aimee received a scholarship to attend the same private school as Nadia.

Foi also grew up in the same neighborhood and attended the same school as Nadia and Aimee.

Thembi and his best friends Chikondi Rangak and Imani Rangak are inseparable as well. They have been that way since growing up in Bamako, Mali. The three boys grew up in the same village, attended the same elementary and high school. They even went to the University of South Africa and pledged the same fraternity, Alpha Omega Kappa. Alpha Omega Kappa is one of the oldest African fraternities whose members have served in many capacities including doctors, lawyers, state, and national representatives. Probably one of their most famous members was South African president, Nelson Mandela, who pledged at the University of Cape Town. When it came time for the boys to go to graduate school, Chikondi chose Harvard law school, Thembi chose to go to Stanford business school, and Imani chose to go to medical school at the University of Cape Town. The three men kept in touch throughout their time in graduate school and held each other accountable for making grades and keeping in touch.

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