Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
The farm office used to be a man cave, with a pile for everything and everything on its pile. Papers were held in place by stained coffee mugs or oily bits of machinery that needed replacing with the next trip to town.
This system worked well for my father and grandfather. They could always find stuff in the dark because of the two rules: Never move anything and never throw anything away. By the time I took over from my father, old calendars hung decades deep on the wall, and the asthmatic Fuchsware fridge had a tray full of half-empty medicine bottles with vintage labels.
By then, the farm had grown too busy for my ancestors’ ancient system, and I started looking for an office administrator to do the VAT returns and keep the paperwork up to date. I had in mind a retired lady in sensible shoes.
Instead, my wife returned from town with a pair of running shoes in which stood a very petite Mbali. She grew up on the neighbouring farm and had just completed an internship at the local Toyota dealer, where she impressed my wife with her efficiency and no-nonsense attitude.
Dream in detail
The oldest sister of a slew of siblings, Mbali had no trouble getting all the men on the farm in line. Coffee mugs got rinsed, papers got filed, and windows got washed. Old parts that had been in the office for years were thrown away, and aside from a small subsidence on my grandfather’s grave, the Earth did not stop spinning. Instead, VAT claims got paid on time, and the old calendars were replaced by those decorative planks women buy at farm shops.
The one above Mbali’s desk reads “Dream in Detail”. I happen to agree with these three words, which elegantly summarise the main lessons from lifetimes of studies on consciousness, faith, and even quantum physics. Lessons like faith that can move mountains, or the observer’s effect on Schrodinger’s cat.
The bottom line is that our thoughts become our realities; so, don’t spend your time worrying! Instead, do as the plank says: dream in detail. If my 57 times around the sun have taught me anything, it is that you will get at least half of what you dream you deserve. (The other half is what other people think you deserve, so also be kind.)
A car that inspires
Mbali’s dream shares a few details with mine – both are Toyotas, and both have two seats. In my case, I’m detailing a sensible, single-cab Hilux for the farm. Mbali’s two-seater dream has much less ground clearance and is also her screensaver, which shows the long hood and low body of the new Toyota GR GT.
This is a halo car, designed to inspire a whole new generation of car lovers, and Toyota could not have released this supercar at a better time.
While the world economy is violently reshaping itself amid conflict and war, Toyota is reminding us of the pinnacle of technology that tamed fire and freed humanity from the tyranny of distance – a 4-litre V8 twin-turbo engine. The combustion in the eight cylinders is boosted by an electric motor in an eight-speed automatic transmission, delivering a combined 641 horsepower (477 kW) under the hood.
Mbali can recite many more details about her dream car, like a suspension tuned for comfortable daily driving and track use, as well as Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres developed specifically for the GR GT.
Even getting only half of these details will still be a wonderful reward, as it will entail a world in which precision engineering enables us to enjoy sunny days at the racetrack, with kids on our shoulders, a few chops on the braai, and a cold drink in hand. That is a dream we can all get behind.
