by Griffin Weller, of University of Vermont
Dumela! Hello!
And welcome to the Africa I have begun to know and loved from the moment we met. Over the last month there have been spectacular sights, exhilarating encounters, and formative friends found. Alas, there is only so much words can do to translate the wonder of modern Africa onto a computer- I’ll try my best:
A month has come and gone, as has our time in Meno A Kwena and the Makgadikgadi Pans. There aren’t many things I won’t miss about the days we spent venturing through this beautiful arid place with the air of discovery around every turn. The nights we spent in the company of a crackling fire- all sharing and laughing and learning. How could one forget the laughing faces of children, all excited to learn about becoming ‘Environmental Stewards’ in the classrooms of Phuduhudu and Moremaoto?
Personally, the image I still can’t clear from the forefront of my mind or rid my dreams of is the sunset over the Pans, with the carmine of the Southern Carmine Bee Eater; the blue of a European Roller; the gold of the Shaft-Tailed Wydah. All the colors of the Birds of Botswana rainbow flying through the sky.
After our departure from our old friend, the Pans, we met our Zebra counterparts (finally)! Our mutual destination: The Nxai Pans National Park, directly north of the Makgadikgadi. More specifically, we were on our way to meet the eldest of elders. Baine’s Baobabs inside the park held a population of true millennials. The moment I laid eyes on the giants in front of me I felt smaller than I had in my life, yet there was no feeling of insignificance. I felt only humbled and honored to be laying my hand on the old, smooth, resilient bark of the baobabs. One thought that brought my jaw to the floor is the fact that before my family had even arrived in North America, these gods among men were reaching higher and higher to the sun.
It reminded me that the time we have here is truly only borrowed. There were beings here before us, as there will be after. I have felt truly touched by the magic I wake up to every morning, and by the elephants that play in the Boteti River waters like drums as they wallow- lullabying me into sweet dreams after the sun has gone.
The possibilities and memories are not over yet, but I am forever grateful already.
Thank you, Africa.
Thank you, readers.
Thola Sentle- good day!