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September in South Africa is the season when the king protea blooms. This national flower, known as the “Pride of Africa”, is setting the field ablaze with its fiery red stamens. At this moment, the king protea wood-carved pen holder, which has been touched by countless hands, is standing silently in an office, and its annual rings contain a national memory that is longer than the Freedom Day Parade. The six-color spectrum of the South African flag is just like the creation philosophy of this pen holder – the craftsmen cut and reorganized African hardwoods of different shades, allowing the dark brown ebony, honey-colored yellow wood and ochre-red mahogany to blend perfectly on the cylinder. Each texture records the history of the tribe, and each cut surface reflects the diverse civilizations, just as the rainbow country uses tolerance to sew up the scars of colonization and replaces violent confrontation with dialogue. The king protea carving on the top of the pen holder implicitly reflects the survival wisdom of this country: the seemingly delicate corolla is actually wrapped with steel-like stamens, just as South Africa used non-violent resistance to bloom the dignity of humanity in the cold winter of apartheid. When the fountain pen is inserted into the pen holder, the wooden hole gently wraps the metal edge, just like Mandela’s political art of using tolerance to dispel hatred. This pen holder measures the height of civilization – when fingers of different skin colors take and put writing tools here, what flows in the wooden grooves is not only ink, but also the collision of ideas across races. It reminds every user: the real strength lies in leaving space for the coexistence of heterogeneous cultures, just like the thousands of stamens of the king protea, which will eventually weave brilliance on the same branch.

September in Suid-Afrika is die blomseisoen vir die koningprotea. Hierdie nasionale blom, bekend as die “Trots van Afrika”, verlig die velde met sy vlammende rooi meeldrade. Op hierdie oomblik staan die keiserlike blom-houtgesnyde penhouer, wat deur tallose hande gestreel is, stil in ‘n kantoor, en sy jaarringe bevat ‘n nasionale herinnering wat langer as die Vryheidsdagparade hou. Die seskleurspektrum van die Suid-Afrikaanse vlag is net soos die kreatiewe filosofie van hierdie penhouer – die vakmanne het Afrika-hardehout van verskillende skakerings gesny en herorganiseer, wat die donkerbruin ebbehout, heuningkleurige geelhout en okerrooi mahonie perfek op die silinder laat saamsmelt. Elke tekstuur teken die geskiedenis van die stam op, en elke afdeling weerspieël die diverse beskawings, net soos die Reënboognasie verdraagsaamheid gebruik om koloniale letsels te genees en gewelddadige konfrontasie met dialoog vervang. Die uitsny van koninklike blomme wat bo-op die penhouer blom, impliseer die oorlewingswysheid van hierdie land: die oënskynlik delikate kroonblaar is eintlik met staalnaaldmeeldrade toegedraai, net soos Suid-Afrika se gebruik van geweldlose weerstand om die waardigheid van die mensdom in die koue winter van apartheid te toon. Wanneer die vulpen in die penhouer geplaas word, vou die houtgat saggies die skerp metaalrand toe, net soos Mandela se politieke kuns om verdraagsaamheid te gebruik om haat te verdryf. Hierdie penhouer meet die hoogtepunt van die beskawing – wanneer vingers van verskillende velkleure skryfgereedskap hier neem en neersit, is dit wat tussen die houtgroewe vloei nie net ink nie, maar ook die botsing van idees oor rasse heen. Dit herinner elke gebruiker: ware krag lê daarin om ruimte te laat vir heterogene kulture om saam te bestaan, net soos die duisende meeldrade van die koningprotea, wat uiteindelik briljantheid op dieselfde tak sal weef.