Welcome to 'The duPs' - The website of Paul and Margaret du Plessis - Margaret a former Medical Social Worker, Paul a physician.

They served with The Salvation Army in Zambia, the United Kingdom, India, and their homeland of South Africa. They retired to live in Bromley, in southeast London. Margaret passed away in 2019.

Their children, Catherine and Andre, and the wider family have always meant a lot to them. Placing Paul’s poems and other information on a website has been a family request for some years. Grandson, David, took on the project and became the website architect.

Please enjoy reading Paul's poems which reflect something of their life experiences.

Margaret has researched the life of Louisa Mary Tucker, the first wife of pioneer Indian missionary, Frederick Tucker.

Please use the menu on the left and the search function in the top right to navigate through the site.

Here is Paul's most recent poem:

Walking with a Younger Man

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Written August 2024
Steps shaped out of layers of sandstone;
Millennial granite from depths deep down;
Memories of past falls become footholds for the future,
Upheavals erupting into new landscapes,
Roots exposed, adding beauty and obstacles,
Rock pulverised to shale, ground into sand
That might comfort the foot but add another hazard.

So I need someone beside me, my rod and staff;
Just two walking poles adding security
As I plod through the forest of gloom
Until I reach the glory of the summit and see what’s beyond,
Discovering it was me who made it after all,
And that beauty may be on the horizon but joy is within,
Preparing me for tomorrow’s uncertain future.

Saleve, Geneva
August 2024