The Rod
I love gardening. Not just because it’s one of the best ways to nourish our bodies but there’s so much more a garden can offer to the spirit and soul. [hashtag Ecotherapy]. Nature, to me has the most accurate answers to our questions. I’ve recently developed a liking for cucumbers; I did not plant the ones that are about to sprout in our garden. They are growing from a small section of manure pile I buried a few weeks back. I’m learning that Cucumbers just like Okra, find Houston climate so intimately conducive and they thrive without much help from me. I’m also learning that love, care and gentleness can make anything grow…now shikilia that thought. I’m taking a quick detour but will be right back on this thought freeway….. maybe…let’s see how this goes.
Beauty precedes fruit
This will be my first “Pacha” blog. Here’s a long rant about why it was hard to get to it. I’ve been meaning to start working on my blog and/or vlog (still downloading) for a while now, but the clouds that came with COVID-19 were suffocating. So I left this page disabled.
I had the time but not the will. I had the subjects but didn’t know where to start. The air was thick with uncertainty, fear, and lots of depressing revelations about the systems within which we live.
I was upset with the 2 so-called French doctors that implied that Africa would be a good testing ground for ‘Corona meds’.
I was upset by the surprise expressed by many, that Africa wasn’t as affected as other parts of the world; our amazing capability was not considered in these comments.
I was upset about the racism against Africans in china; this was sickening on so many levels, wacha tu.
And even when I intentionally tried to shift my focus to the great individuals such as David Avido, Wode Maya, Hamelmal Abate and many more that need to be celebrated, another image would come up that would make my insides burn.
Then for homework on the ‘last’ day of Lisa Nichol’s diet of possibility, she asked a profound question; “what’s at stake?”. What’s at stake when you don’t share what your heart and soul needs to share. What’s at stake when you “don’t play big”? I had to work on expressing what weighed heavy in my heart. However it comes out, shauri yao. I know I am not alone in this.
Day 30 of 30 - Diet of Possibility
On this same day (day 30 of our possibility diet), I got another notification from a post showing a Zambian dad yelling at and slapping his child because he did not pass his G12 exams. I didn’t need to see that video again; but then again, may be I did. Just like in the first post, many of comments bothered me more than the video itself. Many comments referenced the ‘rod’ in Proverbs 13:24. Proverbs IS my favorite book in the bible but I’m now convinced that we got lost in translation at least 3 languages ago.
On this same day, (Day 30), a point that was made from my last Mothers’ Club bible study also lingered in my head. We are stuck in ‘pursuit of accomplishments that allow us to be seen’ (Lisa Brenninkmeyer). The universe kept poking, so I responded. I watched the video of Baba nani and nani (nani could be any of our children) one more time. This is what my chunya said…..
In many of our spaces, just being human is not enough to feel worthy. We have collectively and subconsciously agreed that we have to prove our worth. And from this small space, we are co-authoring ways of living that are sucking the air out of us. COVID19 revealed some of the ways in which our systems have been broken.
You see, me, I’ve worked with several children other than my own. Children are drawn to me and I love them… as long as I can return to sender :). The whispers that land on my ears translate to a failure on our part to express our best and authentic selves. In trying to hold our social masks in place, we force obedience and performance upon our children. Without knowing we are allowing our children to marinate in the toxic environments we have ‘tolerated’.
“Sadly, children’s passion for thinking often ends when they encounter a world that seeks to educate them for conformity and obedience only.”
Although it’s our responsibility to create the world we desire, we have to understand that our current mess was passed down. We cannot have effective solutions without understanding how we got here. It’s evident that we took the baton, I mean rod, from wakoloni. The excerpt below references Kenya but applies to most of the continent.
Let’s familiarize ourselves with the path we followed to get here and then notice when/how what we learned shows up. Let’s do away with whatever doesn’t serve us. Let’s all find our “paths of least resistance” My ask is that we consider sparing the kids, first by raising ourselves to where we need to be and then making sure the village that surrounds them cares enough to be worthy of being in their lives; once we bloom into our better selves we will spark the genius in our children. Children thrive beautifully when the environment is conducive. It literally takes a village. Tusaidiane please.
{If you are a research/data person and would like to go deeper, may I suggest the works of Dr. Joy Degruy and Dr. Mario Martninez.}
Haya….now back to the garden…our garden has taught me a lot and I’ve used many of these lessons with my child and other children that I’ve been blessed to interact with.
The soil has to be rich.
Some plants thrive well together and other’s just don’t (It’s not personal, it’s nature’s business).
The root also needs space; allow room for the roots as well; this will determine how well the plant grows.
When you weed, make sure you take out the whole weed - uproot from the root.
It’s hard to ‘plant’ what’s not indigenous. If the seed is not used to the climate, it will need extra love and care before it can sprout and thrive.
Lastly, the greatest lesson I learnt by watching my beautiful mother Nyar Boro, was prepare the soil and make sure you have a sufficient amount water BEFORE you transplant.
“Plants vary according to the quality of the soil”
Wololo….I’m so passionate about this topic I could go on and on but I’ll leave it here and invite you to “wine” about it with me. If you can spare some time, let’s virtually gallivant. Buy your bottle here https://scoutandcellar.com/product/2017GallivantChardonnay?u=akinyiadoyo and let’s meet in a Zoom Room.
Nyakwar Aloo