True Story
True Story was shaped in the same crucible of life that shaped the Author. It began among a group of Grey College men from the class of eighty five, bound together by friendship, hardship and the quiet courage shared between boys who grew up side by side.
Everybody carries a story. Each story is true to the person who lives it. Yet at times our stories echo each other and in those echoes we find connection. When we speak honestly about our struggles, something remarkable happens. Another person hears their own pain in our words and realises they are not alone. This simple act, the sharing of a human story, has been used for generations to teach, to comfort and to guide.
Background
The spark that became True Story was lit by Gerhard Pienaar, a life-long friend and classmate of the Author. Gerhard grew up in a traditional Afrikaner home with firm expectations, strong values and a clear path laid out before him. You go to school, you serve your country, you work hard, you keep your head down and you do not ask unnecessary questions. Honour, faith and duty formed the backbone of his world.
He followed that path to the letter, attending our all-boys school, studying at the University of the Free State and later at Potchefstroom University. He completed his military service at First Parachute Battalion and the Military School of Intelligence. Through it all he carried one phrase that was repeated to him often, although rarely challenged.
“Cowboys do not cry in front of their horses.”
Going Forward
Fast forward to the present. Our class remains close, even forty years on. Messages are shared daily, jokes traded back and forth and help offered without hesitation. Yet despite this closeness, five classmates have taken their own lives. The most recent loss came only a few months ago. It was a moment when grief and frustration met. A moment when a few of the Cape Town Old Boys said, enough, this cannot continue, we must act. That moment became the birth of True Story.
The movement exists to raise awareness around some of the most pressing issues of our time, issues that affect individuals, families and communities in ways often unseen. We begin with men’s mental health, a subject wrapped in silence for far too long.
Our first campaign took shape during the Grey College reunion. Five men from the class of eighty five piloted and supported each other to ride a Vespa and a Big Boy scooter from Cape Town to Bloemfontein over three days. Over 1000 kilometres. The aim was simple and brave, to break the silence around men’s mental health and the rising tragedy of suicide. We wanted every man we encountered to know that it is acceptable to struggle and more importantly that it is acceptable to reach out. The support from our class and beyond was unbelievable and we certainly moved the needle.
Many more campaigns will follow as we grow the movement. Our purpose is clear. To create awareness, to offer guidance and to help people find professional support where needed. We want to remind every person that it is acceptable not to be ok and that asking for help is an act of strength. True Story will walk that road with them, one honest conversation at a time.
Where It Meets The Book
The work of True Story runs parallel to the themes explored in Piercing the Mirror. Both call for deeper presence. Both ask us to understand ourselves with honesty. Both remind us that strength and vulnerability are not enemies, they are partners. Fulfilment grows when we allow truth to surface, even when that truth feels uncomfortable. True Story carries these ideas into the real world where stories, shared openly and without shame, become instruments of healing.
This is the heart of the movement, a hand reaching across the gap between people. A quiet voice saying you are seen and you are not alone. That is a true story.