Silent Pilgrimage: A short profile

Tech savvy: Junior working in the Rhodes University writing labs.Pic by Mina Maboja

Junior Bester, like many others, likes his chicken.

Deep-fried, sautéed, from KFC to Chicken Licken, Junior is very unlikely to protest over the possible fate of every chicken.

The first time you meet him, you might think he’s the silent type. With his black thinly rimmed glasses, light brown eyes, broad shoulders and a small gold-plated chain around his neck, he can easily be overlooked.

In the beginning, you will have a rough time adjusting your ear to his accent.

You wonder where it’s from until he tells you he’s from Strandfontein in Cape Town. It’s not that he is speaking very fast or slowly, and taking long to get used to it might just tick you off.

The youngest of three boys, you might not be surprised if he were to tell you that maybe, along the line and during his childhood, he may have lost a tooth. Luckily, he doesn’t. Some boys will say Jack Parow changed their life; Junior has his Uncle Mervin and mother who hold that privilege.

You walk behind him, see how he strides in the corridors.  His walk is like the way he wears his clothes: loose but fitting, never ridiculously baggy like he tried to mug Kevin Federline. His strides are easy, he could be walking on water and you would never know it.

Sit down and look at him from a distance: his legs are always moving and jolting. They are pumping up and down from the ground like his mind is forever hosting a techno party. No wonder he never sleeps before midnight and is working on his second degree. You don’t really know his story but you can tell that Junior is on some kind of mission, but better than that of Tom Cruise.