Everyone was very thirsty, it hadn’t rained much and no one knew what to do in the savannah. Some keep their memory of an ancient story, one that tells of a magical tree that will give food and drink to anyone who remembers its name. The problem is that only the spirits of Kilimanjaro know the correct answer. The inhabitants of the magical African bush are visited by lions, cheetahs, buffaloes and monkeys. They tried to save their land, but they all failed, forgot their name or got lost on the way. Until the turtle, in a slow but sure step, can reminds you of the magic tree what is that called? This is the awangalema, the tree of life.
Time passed, the story became a legend and its origin was forgotten. The age of men and their machines came and the power of the magical trees faded. First its roots and the grass that grew under its shade disappeared, and then the earth, washed away by the water. The rivers became muddy and we had to move forward to find something to drink. Until someone once again dreams of getting his power back. the the story of Wangari Muta Maathai This, like the turtle in the legend, is a story of time, patience and determination to return to the savannah to protect all its creatures.
The seed of a different life
Carrying water, collecting firewood, working in the fields. A girl born in colonial Kenya in 1940 could not hope for more in life. Wangari Muta Maathai, the daughter of ethnic Kikuyu farmers, is no different. But the spirits of Kilimanjaro They had a different fate in store for him. Muta Maathai can study, travel, and return to his country to restore the power of the trees. She would also become one of the first African women to earn a doctorate and the first to win a Nobel Prize. He did so in 2004 for his contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace.
But let’s go back to Nyeri, his hometown in the central highlands of Kenya, and 1940. Like many other Kenyans, his parents worked on a white-owned farm. Despite the difficulties, her mother worked hard to ensure that Wangari Maathai and her siblings could go to school, learn English, and complete basic education. At 20 years old, when the Mau Mau rebellion opens the door Kenya’s independence from the United Kingdom near the end, Maathai’s life will take an unexpected turn: he will travel far away to Atchison, in Kansas (USA).
