African Desert Trip LO18289

Mnr AM de Lange (amdelange@gold.up.ac.za)
Sun, 7 Jun 1998 20:00:30 GMT+2

Dear Organlearners,

> [Host's Note: Welcome back, At, from your trip! Readers: At is continuing
> here a series on his seven essentialities. ...Rick]

Thank you very much Rick. I did something on that tour which I did
never before. I kapt a diary to write down my experiences and
thoughts for the LOlist. I hate to take motes and it has often been a
stumbling block in my reasearch. I then have to search for the
references again. But, it is much less w waste of time as taking
these notes in the first place.

It was a wonderful trip, but it also had its bad stretches.

After all good and bad which have happened, one thing stands out of
my mind as never before. DO NOT DO IT ALONE.

Twenty years ago, still in my full powers, I could cover a whole
mountain range in a day. One day I and Kurt, an old friend of mine
(I was about 35 and he was about 65) went to the Naukluft mountains
in southern Namibia (close to a place with the wonderful name of
Solitaire, see if you can find it on a map). I decided to leave him
and explore the deep mountains on my own. He was too slow going and
tend to keep close to our vehicle. About 7km from our vehicle, I
broke my ankle. I managed to jump about 1 km on the other leg on
rocks before I strained that ankle also. The next 6km I had to crawl
on knees and hands to get to the vehicle. I reached it at dusk to
find the my friend in great anguish about my fate.

On our present trip to the Kaokoland we were five people. Three of
them had never been to the deserts before. Me and the other companion
who owned this brand new Landrover 4x4 (state of the art) had been to
deserts before, some times even together. Every thing went well until
we reached the treacherous tracks of Kaokoland. We took two spare
tyres along, 4 spare inner tubes and 10 gaters to repair any
punctures. But in less than 300 km we lost two tyres used up all
tubes and 9 gaters. The tyres could simply not take the punch over
the shatp rocks. They were six ply whereas I personaly use 10 ply
tyres to prevent objects piercing through them. We have covered only
a third of Kaokoland.

The reason why we turned back, is because although we were five
people, we had only one vehicle! We became so aware of this fact that
we dared not try the other two thirds. All five of us agreed that we
should try it again next time with better tyres and a convoy of at
least two vehicles. How is that for quality control and doing things
together?

But let me tell about one of the nicer incidents. The most exquisite
night was when we reached the Kahn valley (which is about in the
middle of Nambia, in the desert, but far way from Kaokoland in the
north.).

The inside of the valley affords a moon-like landscape. We took three
friends along, Attie Louw and his two grown up sons Adriaan and
Johan. The three of them admitted after the journey that they will
never forget that night and the next morning. The three of them
always wondered why I took so special care of my Adenia pechuelii
plants in my hothouse (aridarium). These plants are succulent members
from the passion flower (grenadilla) family Paccifloraceae.

But when they saw these plants in their full grandeur in a desert
where little else can grow, some of the plants probably 2000 years
old, they realised how precious life can be. The four of them
(including my other friend Basjan, owner of the Landrover) slept
safely in two tents on top of the landdrover.

They were very worried about me sleeping in the open on the ground
with merely a sleeping bag to cover me. I still has the flu. I hate
to be confined inside the sleeping bag. I only sleep inside the bag
when the wind blows it off me. I also explained to them that I need
the animal side of me to be awakened, but they at first did not
understand.

Sleeping like an animal does many things to you. One of the things is
that your senses never goes to sleep like your mind. You slumber off,
but awakens at every sound or even the feignt flash of a falling
star. Also, when the body gets old beyond 50 years, it does not take
so readily to the hard ground.

During the night, each of them, one by one, awakened and got out.
Obviously, in each case I also woke up. Then we began to whisper our
observations and feelings. The stars are so bright and many in the
clean, cold desert air that it is almost as if the landscape was lit
by moonlight. Looking at the Adenia pechuelii palnts in our vincinity
was an incredible experience. It was as if they acted as our
sentinals, telling us how precious life is. We could make out their
shapes even in the dim light - fat globular bodies with spikes like
that of a porcupine on top to protiect themselves.

By looking at this barren, rocky landscape with these strange living
objects, we got the feeling how we were lifted away to a new
dimension of planetary life, almost as if we were on a different
planet. Were it not for the familiar positions of the main stars, it
is easy to believe that we are on a different planet.

The call of a desert wolf in one instance was a frightening
experience for Johan. With big eyes he asked "Oom (uncle), are you
not afraid to sleep outside." I said to him: "What will become, will
become. That is why it is so important to experience the animal in
us. We have to become alerted like animals because we need to become
ready for things which which civilisation made us forget about.
Luckily you are 30 years younger than me and so can run the faster.
So you are safer than me." This brought a smile to his face.

After the journey all three the Louws (Attie, Adriaan and Johan) said
that they definitely want to go to that place again. Two days later my
own, eldest son, Adriaan phoned up to enquire about the journey. When
I told him that we had been at the place of the Adenia Pechuelii
plants, he almost cried.

Long ago, I took him and my other son Johannes to the Kahn
valley when they were 8 and 5 years old. Each of them can still
vividly remember almost every event there. I said to my son quietly:
"Adriaan, if you really want to be there, you will make a plan to get
there. You cannot rely on me." I could "hear" him thinking on the
other side. He then said: "Give my son Ian another four years and I
will take him there myself."

It is then when I realised what I should tell all you people:
DO IT TOGETHER, ENJOYING EACH OTHER'S HAPPINESS.
This is one of the rewarding things about a learning organisation -
to experience the wholeness between us.

Best wishes

-- 

At de Lange Gold Fields Computer Centre for Education University of Pretoria Pretoria, South Africa email: amdelange@gold.up.ac.za

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