An unexpected connection at the MEF Awards became part of my Mrs South Africa journey.
One of the things my Mrs South Africa journey has taught me is that we don't always recognise the significance of a relationship when it begins. Sometimes, God allows us to cross paths with people long before we understand how they will fit into our story.
I think about this whenever I think about Mpho Hlongwane.
It Started With a Table
When I attended the MEF Awards hosted by Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng, the event took place during the day, and I found myself sitting at the same table as Mpho and her family.
We greeted one another, and for the most part, everyone at the table was there with the people they had come to support. We spoke to the people we knew, exchanged a few words with one another and settled into the day. I think we were all waiting for the award categories that mattered to us, particularly those in which people we knew had been nominated.
There were a few interactions around the table before the awards began, but nothing that felt particularly significant at the time. Looking back, however, what I remember most is how easily a group of strangers made space for one another. We didn't know each other's backgrounds, businesses or titles. We simply shared a table, greeted one another, spoke when the opportunity arose and allowed everyone to be part of the room.
There was a kindness in that.
And I think we underestimate how meaningful that can be.
When the awards began, each winner went up to the podium and, as part of their speech, shared what they did and the work they were being recognised for. When Mpho's name was called for the Entrepreneur Award, I watched her go up, receive her award and speak about her work.
When she returned to the table, everyone congratulated her.
Not long after that, my husband was announced as the winner in the African Researcher category. He went up to receive his award and share about the work he had been recognised for, and when he returned, the same people at the table congratulated him.
There was something special about that moment. Two people who had come into the room for completely different reasons, with different journeys and different achievements, had somehow found themselves at the same table, celebrating one another.
After the event, Mpho and I connected on LinkedIn and Instagram. We congratulated each other again, and then life continued.
At the time, I had no idea that this simple connection would become part of my story.
You Don't Always Know Who You're Meeting
Fast forward to January 2026.
I had entered Mrs South Africa, and as I began navigating this new chapter, there were opportunities to partner with local brands. I started thinking about the kind of people and businesses whose stories aligned with what I wanted my journey to represent.
Mpho came to mind.
I remembered her story at MEF. I remembered hearing about what she was building and, perhaps most importantly, I remembered seeing a woman who had dared to pursue her own vision.
After a few conversations, MH Automotive came on board as a sponsor of my Mrs South Africa journey.
When I look at that now, I am reminded of just how little we know about the significance of the moments we are living in.
When I attended MEF, I did not know that 2026 would be the year I entered Mrs South Africa. Becoming part of Mrs South Africa had always been a dream of mine, but I didn't know when I would pursue it. I certainly didn't walk into that room thinking I was preparing for a future pageant journey or looking for people who would eventually become part of it.
But something about being in that room awakened something in me.
I was surrounded by people who were building things, pursuing ideas and taking their dreams seriously. Listening to their stories reminded me of what becomes possible when people are willing to believe in an idea and do the work required to bring it to life.
It made me go back to the drawing board with some of my own dreams.
And perhaps that is one of the beautiful things about entering rooms. Sometimes you walk in thinking you are simply attending an event, and you walk out having encountered an idea, a person or a possibility that stays with you long after the event is over.
Be Kind Before You Know Who Someone Is
There is another lesson from that day that has stayed with me: be kind to people before you know who they are.
We live in a world where networking can sometimes feel transactional. We meet someone and almost immediately want to know what they do, who they know, what they can offer or whether they can help us get somewhere.
But what if we simply treated people well because they were people?
What if we could sit at a table with someone we have never met, greet them, make room for them in the conversation and celebrate their achievement without wondering what we might get in return?
That is what happened that day.
I didn't know what Mpho was building. Mpho didn't know what I would eventually go on to build. Neither of us knew what the future held. Yet today, Mpho, our families and I are literally just a phone call away.
That is the part of the story that amazes me.
A simple greeting at a table eventually became a relationship. That relationship eventually became a partnership, and today, MH Automotive is part of my Mrs South Africa journey.
But I don't want the lesson to be that if you are nice to people, they might become your sponsors. That would completely miss the point.
The lesson is that relationships are valuable before they become useful.
Celebrate people when it is their moment. Be genuinely interested in what others are building. Make room for people you don't know. Enter rooms without always asking what you can get from them.
Because you never know what a relationship might become.
You Can Win Differently
I have always believed that there are many ways to win.
Sometimes we think winning means getting the opportunity, receiving the award, securing the partnership or achieving the goal we came for. But there are also quieter ways of winning that we don't always recognise in the moment.
You can win by expanding your network.
You can win by learning something that changes how you see your own possibilities.
You can win by meeting someone who introduces you to a world you didn't know existed.
You can win by forming relationships that grow naturally over time.
And sometimes, you win simply by having the courage to walk into the room.
I walked into MEF to support my husband. I sat at a table with people I didn't know. I greeted Mpho. We spoke. We connected online. Then life moved on.
At the time, I could not have imagined that months later, I would be standing in my own Mrs South Africa journey with MH Automotive supporting me.
That is why I keep coming back to the same thought:
You never know what one room can lead to.
You never know who you are going to meet.
You never know whose story will awaken something in you.
You never know which relationship will grow.
And you never know who might become a destiny helper along the way.
So, when the invitation comes, perhaps don't ask only, “What is in this room for me?”
Ask yourself, “What might become possible because I was willing to enter it?”
Perhaps your next opportunity isn't waiting for you to have everything figured out.
Perhaps it is waiting for you to simply step into a differet room.