The Jewels of June . That’s us, June Diko and Florence May . Best of friends . We set off to Joburg in the bustling 8os , to busk and make art . We were both geminis: born in June of 1965. I met Flo when my mother began privately nursing the affluent May family . This was a radical change from working as one of the underpaid black nurses in Apartheid South Africa. The May family opened doors . June and I were sent to a prestigious boarding school starting from 7th grade . When Flo’s mother ran off to England , I was there for her . When my father took a second wife and my broken hearted mother left him , Flo was there for me.

I taught Flo reggae and she hooked me to white folk music . We sang together in talent shows . June’s father gave me my first painting set . My first painting hangs in Flo’s old house .