We have officially hit the halfway mark of our centenary year. Where has the time gone?
Six months have flown by in the best possible way. We kicked off the celebrations with our New Year’s Eve party and have been going ever since – from our film about the intention to Hold the Light, to the launch of our long-awaited three-part documentary series about the stories that make up the history of this place, to the everyday small moments where we welcome our global Londolozi family home, whether it’s their first visit to the wilderness or their fiftieth. Our golden lanterns have adorned leadwood trees on camp decks and libraries in London (if you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy of our beautiful new book in partnership with Assouline – The Safari That Changed Everything).
But perhaps most special has been the inpouring of love from so many of you by way of your heartwarming birthday messages to Londolozi on her 100th birthday.
There is a particular feeling that comes with being loved from a distance. We did not know, going into this milestone, how it would feel to turn one hundred. What we did not anticipate was this: the quiet overwhelm of being so thoroughly found.
Over the past months, birthday messages have been arriving. From Johannesburg and Japan, from London to Los Angeles – from people who sat by the Sand River once and never quite left to those who found themselves, found each other, and found their place in this world because of their time here. Each one a small light. Together, holding the light. They have become something we can only describe as an inpouring – love finding its way home to Londolozi on our 100th birthday.
One hundred years asks something of you. It asks you to be still enough to receive. And so we have been still. And we have received abundantly.
Please keep sending your messages. Every one of them reaches us. Every one of them matters more than you know. You are the tribe that makes this place more than a place, and we feel that more fully than we have words for.
Throughout the remainder of this centenary year, we’ll be sharing selections of these messages on our channels – celebrating the voices that make up this living archive of love and memory. If you’ve been moved by Londolozi in some way, or would simply like to share your wishes on our birthday, we would love to hear from you. Speak to your Camp Manager on your next visit, or reach us from wherever you are in the world by way of email, video or voice message. We can’t wait to hear from you.
How to send your own birthday message:
- Record a video message on your phone and email the link to us
- If you’d prefer to send a voice note, drop us an email first, and we’ll send you the simple steps for submitting via WhatsApp.
- Write us an email with your wishes
- On your next visit to us, either while enjoying a cup of coffee out in the bush, sitting quietly taking the day in on the deck of your room or watching the sun set over the horizon, record a video message on your phone while you are at the lodge and drop it off for us with your Camp Manager.
- Tag us on social media with your birthday messages so that we can share the love with the rest of our global family
All emails, questions or queries can be sent to loveletters@londolozi.co.za
Whether you choose to celebrate in this way, or quietly in your own way, know that we feel the inpouring of love and receive it with deep gratitude.
PS: If you have a birthday message but are shy about it being shared, please send it anyway and let us know you would like to keep it off the airwaves – we are glad to receive your wishes and appreciate that not everything needs to be shared.
I was so happy when I was able to celebrate Easter and your 100th birthday with you in April!
Another wonderful stay at a wonderful place.
Great idea!!!!