I had no load shedding for five months. And in that time, I forgot what a pain it is.
I don’t exactly know why my neighbourhood was spared from around November last year.
I believe it’s because we are on the same grid as a nearby sewage plant that had run out of gas and needed to use electricity.
When the new budget was announced, the plant presumably was able to buy gas again to mitigate load shedding, so we were dumped back into darkness.
A colleague was in a similar enviable position, being on the same grid as the nearby Mowbray Maternity Hospital.
Just like me, he was blissfully unaware of being forced to plan your domestic life around the constant spectre of blackouts.
I tell you these stories because I want to demonstrate how quickly you can fall out of step with the rhythm of your surroundings.
I revelled in the convenience of having electricity whenever I needed it. The only time the lights went out was when my household ran out of units.
We could get on with the ordinariness of our daily lives, without an electrical worry in the world. It is this very human nature that makes me believe our political leadership can’t possibly give load shedding the urgent attention that it requires.
The simple fact is that for as long as they have free options, load shedding cannot be top of mind for them. While ordinary people with means are still saving up enough money to invest in a generator or an inverter, they are state-sponsored.
The same applies to everything else that we are struggling with at the moment.
Interest rates are through the roof and the price of petrol is set to go up again at the end of the month.
For many people, these are make-or-break developments that weigh heavily on our minds and force us to cut down on our standard of living.
For others, it’s the difference between having their own home, and squatting with family, or owning a car and walking to work.
But if you’re a minister with a government car that’s being maintained with taxpayers’ money, living in a house that is similarly paid for by the people, how can these things concern you?
Your guilt may force you to spare a thought every now and again, but if you’re not a compassionate person by nature, it’s hard to be sympathetic towards the plight of others.
Empathy is part of the reason our Muslim friends subjected themselves to the month of fasting that ended on Saturday.
It’s to appreciate and have compassion for the plight of the less-fortunate.
I can testify to how easy it is to lose sight of the suffering of others, when you have come to expect convenience and privilege.
Ministers are human too, but ultimately they need to rise above that and appreciate the purpose behind their election – to work towards the betterment of all South Africans.
In return, we allow them the privileged lifestyle that far exceeds our own, even though they often legislate it without our permission.
So we have been feeding the monster that we created. And now that we are hungry, that monster is demanding the few crumbs we have been left with.