Writing this column tends to be a Sunday afternoon routine of contemplation and reflection on the week that was. But there are a few weeks, such as before the Easter holiday, when this routine is disrupted, as I am required to submit two instalments in one week.

As I wrote this column, on the morning of March 14, news of Stephen Hawking’s passing broke. Professor Stephen Hawking, that is. Do you know who he was? Do you know what he was famous for? To most people, he is probably best known for having made guest appearances in several television shows, such as Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Simpsons and The Big Bang Theory. You might know him as the man ‘famed’ for being confined to a wheelchair for over 50 years since shortly after twenty-first birthday. Why he spoke with an America accent, through a speech-generating device, and not a British accent, is one of the great mysteries.

Hawking is famed for his book A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes, which was published in 1988 and was written for nonspecialist readers. As is the case with books written by most famous people, since his passing, his book has become the number one best seller on Amazon. If you have not read it yet, you should – you do not have the excuse that it is not in stock. You might well even enjoy Hawking’s ‘wicked‘ sense of humour.

This column, which you might well be reading over Easter, is one of reflection – a time for you to take a step back and consider that there are people in the world who are facing bigger challenges in their lives than you but are still making a difference.

Hawking reminds me of my grandmother, on my mother’s side, a person imprisoned in a fragile and failing body. Her condition did not capture her spirit or her soul. She was one of the funniest and most inspirational people that I have ever known. I never saw her angry, complaining or disheartened. As Hawking would remind us: “People won’t have time for you if you are always angry or complaining.”

When one considers the travesty that has come to personify the collective that is South Africa, it is difficult not to become angry or disheartened, or to want to complain. As I looked at the previous week and felt the urge to write about that which is wrong about the economics of South Africa, my thoughts could not depart from Hawking and my grandmother, and I was reminded of the Serenity Prayer. The Serenity Prayer is the common name for a prayer written by theologian Reinhold Niebuhr: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference.”

Remember, you can make a difference. As Hawking said, in jest: “I have noticed even people who claim everything is predestined, and that we can do nothing to change it, look before they cross the road.”

If there is a takeaway, then consider this quote from Hawking: “For millions of years, mankind lived just like the animals. Then something happened which unleashed the power of our imagination. We learned to talk and we learned to listen. Speech has allowed the communication of ideas, enabling human beings to work together to build the impossible. Mankind’s greatest achievements have come about by talking, and its greatest failures by not talking. It doesn’t have to be like this. Our greatest hopes could become reality in the future. With the technology at our disposal, the possibilities are unbounded. All we need to do is make sure we keep talking.”

He also said: “Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don’t just give up.”