Igunza Massambullah was showing me...
Illustration
Igunza Massambullah was showing me around the family "shamba" in rural, eastern Kenya. He indicated that only a dozen people made their living off these 15 acres and that afforded them
a much more comfortable living than some of their neighbors. As we toured, he pointed out where they grew all the fruits and vegetables they needed. For meat, the family not only had chickens, but they raised fish in a tiny pond at the edge of their land. When asked how they plowed their ground, his young cousin showed me the hand-held hoes with which they worked. He even demonstrated --with a lesson on how the handle on the men's hoe was a little longer than the one used by women in the family. (I could not help but notice that the women's hoe seemed to have a great deal more wear than the one used by the man.)
The more I saw, the more I was impressed by the way Africans live in harmony with the earth. The people were obviously poor and enjoyed few of the comforts or technological benefits of living in the United States. Their way of life, however, has some important lessons to teach. They seem to hear more clearly than the developed nations the admonition of Revelation: "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees."
--Cueni
a much more comfortable living than some of their neighbors. As we toured, he pointed out where they grew all the fruits and vegetables they needed. For meat, the family not only had chickens, but they raised fish in a tiny pond at the edge of their land. When asked how they plowed their ground, his young cousin showed me the hand-held hoes with which they worked. He even demonstrated --with a lesson on how the handle on the men's hoe was a little longer than the one used by women in the family. (I could not help but notice that the women's hoe seemed to have a great deal more wear than the one used by the man.)
The more I saw, the more I was impressed by the way Africans live in harmony with the earth. The people were obviously poor and enjoyed few of the comforts or technological benefits of living in the United States. Their way of life, however, has some important lessons to teach. They seem to hear more clearly than the developed nations the admonition of Revelation: "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees."
--Cueni