Ancestral Lessons

Alright,it's official-I have fallen in love with Rwanda, the natural beauty of the land, the people and the unwavering determination to rebuild this nation are stunning. This is Africa's best kept secret and now that we have visited, we are encouraged to be ambassadors of their growing hospitality and tourism industry. If you have been following my posts, you have probably noted some themes among the servant leaders I have interviewed, but the last two days were spent with Diane Fosse's beloved mountain gorillas at Volcanoes National Park. I learned that these distant ancestors of ours are kind, loving, communal, tolerant (of the daily parade of 8 humans that visit each family each day) playful and generous. The Silverback-the leader- serves his family by leading the path to food each day, sleeping on the ground to protect the tree nests of the mothers, babies and juveniles, playing with the youngsters, and intervening decisively and quickly when needed, but quickly returning to calm once the conflict has passed. We witnessed two such incidents: one between two blackbacks (teen males) who were playing a bit too hard and one when a juvenile stole a banana from a baby and the mother started to charge the juvenile. In both cases the Silverback waited to see if the situation would resolve on its own, but when it didn't he immediately and swiftly intervened with his presence and vocalizations-crises resolved instantly and immediate calm restored.

There is no such thing as war, genocide, arrogance, greed, pride, or selfishness among these magnificent primates. Not to stretch the point too far, but I am again struck by human capacity for the depths of debauchery, destruction and despair as well as the heights of artistry, humaneness, and hope for a better future. Maybe our fate is tied to our extremes, but I can't help but wonder if Gandhi's message of returning to our simpler roots and finding ways to live with nature in a more sustainable fashion hasn't been staring us in the face all along--we just haven't been looking in the right places.