A Kenyan Farmer Found Precious Bounty In His Barren Fields

Denis Maina Gathanju writes:

http://www.colored-stone.com/stories/nov06/kenya.cfm

When he was allocated 50 hectares of dry land in southeastern Kenya soon after independence in 1963, Naftli Githinji Waigwa was heartbroken. “How can I ever grow crops in such a dry area?” a distraught Waigwa complained.

John Gitonga, his best friend, asked how he could complain when he had yet to see the land for himself. The two young men were reminded of a traditional custom among their tribe, the Kikuyu, in which one is never supposed to get choosey when given something; one is to receive it with open arms.

So the two men, in a new independent Kenya, decided to keep the pieces of land in far-off Taita Taveta district of Kenya’s Coast province.

Today, more than four decades since they were allocated the land, Waigwa and Gitonga are grateful for adhering to the old Kikuyu proverb.

“I could never have imagined myself in my current state then,” says a delighted Waigwa, his old, wrinkled hands trembling as he holds a small bright red stone. “This,” he softly says, “is the kind of harvest I get from my ‘farm’ in Taita Taveta.

“It’s a ruby,” he continues, his eyes lighting up with excitement.