HUNTING WITH THE SILVER FOXES
International Men’s health month edition
There are evenings that produce content.
And there are evenings that produce silence.
This was the latter.
The invitation promised a conversation about failure, fatherhood, success, recovery and the long, uneven road to becoming men of consequence.
Three panellists. One moderator.
A room full of accomplished gentlemen carrying stories that do not appear on LinkedIn profiles or annual reports.
By the end of the evening, we had laughed, shared, listened and, yes, a few tears escaped without seeking anybody’s permission.
Curiously, the W-word never came up.
Not once.
No grand debates. No scorecards. No explanations about the state of modern civilisation.
Perhaps age teaches a man that some battles are best replaced with understanding and some conversations are too important to be reduced to whatsapp messages.
And so, in keeping with the oldest rule in fellowship:
What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.
The details shall remain where they belong—with the 92 men who sat in that room.
The rest of you, dear readers, shall have to settle for the official minutes: the drinks menu and the buffet.
If the organisers wanted to set the tone for the evening, they succeeded brilliantly.
The Brand Manager needs a promotion
The welcome cocktails read like chapters from a man’s life.
There was The Classic Fox—built on a Johnnie Walker Blonde base, accompanied by cinnamon, lime and apple, and finished with a dried apple wheel.
Smooth, balanced and confident enough not to shout.
Then there was Rugged & Bearded—hibiscus, honey, citrus, bitters and an orange garnish.
A little sweetness, a little bitterness and just enough edge to remind you that character is rarely formed in comfort.
The choice of a Blonde base spirit felt appropriate.
Life has a way of telling older men to keep walking, to keep evolving and to travel lighter than they did in their youth.
Less fire and fury.
More conversation and companionship.
The buffet, meanwhile, performed its sacred African duty with distinction.
As every man knows, fellowship is important—but fellowship after a good meal is civilisation itself.
People returned for seconds.
No greater compliment exists.
To Lucas Maranga aka Lord Buxton, Mak’odingo, Blanco and the Silver Foxes,
Ahsanteni sana.
Sema Epic.
Thank you for creating a space where men could speak without performance,
listen without interruption and leave without judgement.
Thank you for reminding us that brotherhood is not built in dramatic moments but in ordinary evenings shared around tables, stories and laughter.
The public record ends here.
The private lessons remain with those who hunted together.
See you at the next gathering.
Until then, we keep walking. (these guys need to swing kala)
We keep learning.
We keep becoming.
And perhaps that is all any man can honestly ask of himself:
Not to be the richest man.
Not to be the strongest man.
Simply to be the best man he can be.
Go with song.
Mubarikiwe. Jah Bless.