Cian's Tree

At Mara Timbo they provide an opportunity for reforestation of the Masai Mara reserve. You can buy a tree and the money goes to the Masai people and they send you pictures of your tree. The program is called "I have a tree in Africa" after the line from "Out of Africa" that starts with "I have a farm in Africa". Anyway, Keith and I decided to get a tree for Cian for him to remember the trip and to be able to watch his tree grow.

On our way out of the camp there was a small patch of land where they plant the trees and the guys were there waiting for us with Cian's tree. They didn't know the English word for the type of tree but the Masai people use it to brush their teeth they said smiling. They had dug a hole and Cian, slung on my hip, and I put the tree in the hole and covered it with earth and the guys helped us plant his tree. He had a little placard that has his name on it and for some reason the whole experience was really moving.

I know I have a love of trees and Africa and my kid so it sort of makes sense that it would mean a lot to me but it felt like a sacred act to plant this tree. It reminded me of my "African mom" Catherine Phiri (from Malawi) and a scene from my life that I have thought of often since I have been here. One day when we were out having dinner someone said something to her about her HIV/AIDS and her not-so-distant mortality. This was a woman that lived life out to every little corner and was healthy and strong but HIV/AIDS is a death sentence in Malawi so he wasn't entirely wrong just entirely rude. Anyway, she stretched up to her full height and held her head up high and said "I am not dying - I will live long enough to see Amanda bring my grandbabies home to Africa". She died in May 2003 from AIDS. Keith and I traveled to Malawi a few months later to see our friends there and I missed her presence greatly and I never forgot what she said. I always knew that I would bring my babies to Africa even though she wasn't there to see them - to honor her memory and her impact on my life. And having something permanent, growing roots into the ground on the continent I love so much with the name of my son beside it, proof that he was here, was such a beautiful sight. I will always carry it in my heart.