Last week I wrote about how the world’s top five beauty pageant titles now belong to women of colour.
And of course our very own Zozibini Tunzi is one of them, having been crowned Miss Universe last month.
How fabulous was it to see her being interviewed on the world stage by none other than our own Trevor Noah?
There was something about that image that made me want to repeatedly beat my chest, as it spoke right to my feelings of African pride.
I hope to see dozens more images like that in the new decade that awaits us.
What I also hope to see a lot more of - and which I forgot to mention last week - is the woman who is having to fill Tunzi’s Miss SA shoes while she travels the world.
WORLD STAGE: Zozibini Tunzi & TV host Trevor Noah. Picture: Supplied.
Just like Tunzi, Sasha-Lee Olivier is also destroying aesthetic stereotypes.
Yes folks, the modelling industry considers our proxy Miss SA to be plus-sized, something which she has cleverly embraced as a sign of our times.
In addition to this; and as a survivor of sexual molestation, she has become an activist, shining a light on this very topical issue as well.
These are all weighty issues that never before would’ve been attached to the world of beauty pageants.
And if a judge dared to try, by means of a current affairs question, we would almost certainly have been guaranteed a giggle at the expense of the contestant.
I also note that Sasha-Lee is a fan of the Big Bang Theory series which almost certainly means that she is geek-level smart.
Some of you have written to me wondering why I am bothering to write about beauty pageants.
One writer even went as far as calling them a waste of time. Time that I could be spending on far more important things, like the state of politics, Donald Trump’s impeachment or the extradition of the Guptas.
And of course I often do write about matters that I consider to be critical and this is a subject that I give equal importance to.
I have always considered myself an observer of social and pop trends; and I often take a very long view of these things.
While many of us may not think much of beauty pageants, the fact is, billions of people watch and enjoy these shows every year.
And the messages that these shows convey are therefore of utmost importance.
There must be a real chance for the little rural girl dreaming of becoming Miss World one day, irrespective of her hair texture or unpopular intelligence.
HISTORIC: Donald Trump, third US prez to be impeached. Picture: Supplied.
I’m noticing a new and very obvious appreciation for intelligence, substantial values and unique diversity on a global stage, that was previously designed especially to only celebrate slender beauty.
Those beauties almost always also had a vague grasp on things that mattered to thinking people.
But it seems like lately the universe is trying to re- balance itself.
Just consider some of the other interesting observations from the Miss Universe pageant, namely that some of the palest countries in the world, including Finland, France and Belgium were represented by women of colour.
In fact, Miss England showed the world her Indian roots with her Bollywood dance, while Miss Jamaica has a typically Indian surname.
Who would’ve thought that one day something as mundane and trite as Miss Universe, would give us a peek into the future humanity deserves.