'You never left me' - Somizi’s heartfelt note to his mother on the anniversary of her death

It has been just over a year since legendary actress Mary Twala died, and her son Somizi has penned a heartfelt tribute to his mother.

Mary died at Netcare Park Lane Hospital in Johannesburg at the age of 80. She had been in and out of hospital for several months with illness.

As the nation remembered Mary on the first anniversary of her death this past weekend, Somizi took to Instagram to share how much she meant to him.

“On this day last year you left the earth but you definitely never left me. Forever my Ma,” he wrote alongside a picture of Mary.

Somizi and his mother were very close.

Granddaughter and family spokesperson Phumzile Twala told TshisaLIVE last year that Somizi was on his way to the hospital when his mother died.

“I was taking care of her. A day before her passing she was her old self. Doctors said she was up and jolly just 30 minutes before her passing. The doctor told her Somizi was on the way and she was so happy. All of a sudden she slipped away.”

She said Somizi and the family were “not OK” and struggled to cope with the news of Mary’s death.

The Idols SA judge nearly lost his mother to a heart attack shortly before his white wedding in January last year, and in an intimate moment captured on camera the pair shed tears as they reflected on Somizi’s big day.

Mary sat in her wheelchair with tears in her eyes, clinging to a blanket while she watched her son.

“When my mother came and watched me, it was like I was being watched by an angel who  no-one else could see but myself,” Somizi said of the moment.

He promised at her funeral to always make her proud.

“I know I have lost a mother on earth but gained the most powerful ancestor. Don’t be surprised if I rise beyond because I have the most generous ancestor. I promise to never make you an angry ancestor. Thank you for everything. I love you,” he said.