Messages from the beautiful men living in Turkana

"What? You're kidding! It's so cool and beautiful."

These were words that came out of my mouth when I saw these nomadic men living in the far reaches of the earth, more than 1 km away from Japan.

At the time, livestock was being bought and sold, with chickens, donkeys, goats, cows, and even camels gathered at the market and being auctioned off by nomadic men.

In late 2017, I was in the northernmost part of Kenya, Africa, inhabited by a nomadic tribe called the Turkana people. The Turkana region, which shares borders with Uganda, South Sudan, and Ethiopia, is home to the huge Lake Turkana in the desert, a World Heritage Site, and a national park teeming with flora and fauna.

However, in recent years, global warming has hit the African continent hard, and the severe drought that has continued for the past few years has killed off most of the Turkana's precious livestock, and the number of malnourished children is increasing due to water and food shortages, putting the people in a critical situation. It is said that 9% of the Turkana people live in poverty (those living on less than $1.9 per day), and the prolonged drought has further exacerbated the extreme poverty of this ethnic group. UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO) issued emergency press releases in 2017 calling this a "serious problem."

It was in this situation that I landed in Turkana to understand and investigate the current situation and to work with the Kenyan government and development aid agencies to consider solutions.

In preparation for my trip to the site, I read a variety of literature and reports in Japan.

The more information I gather, the more my mind
parched earth
Skinny, hollow-eyed children and their families
That was the only image I could imagine him in.

And now,
Under the scorching sun, the nomadic Turkana men stood before me in a very real way.

They were dressed in unique fashions and their dignified appearance with their chests held high completely overturned my imagination.

They are clad in bright fabrics, with rare bird feathers attached to the side of their hats, and wear large rings made from camel or cow bones and horns, as well as necklaces and bracelets made from African beads.

Wherever they go, they carry a long stick to handle their livestock, and a wooden chair that can also be used as a pillow.

When I tried to touch the wooden chair without any protection, the Turkana man quickly took "MY chair" away from me, glared at me and said,

"(Only myself or a man of my race can sit here.)"

He conveyed this with the power of his eyes.

It was a powerful vision.

Even after I had successfully completed my field research and returned home, I still occasionally thought back to the men I had met in Turkana.

I wonder what excitement rang inside me when I saw them for the first time.

Where did the beauty I saw in them come from?

Just when I was vaguely thinking about this quest, an American friend came to visit me in Japan, and when I brought up the topic, he told me about some interesting research results that had been published in the United States regarding "happiness" and "wealth."

The survey on "happiness" was conducted among several ethnic groups and groups around the world, including the Amish (a group of people in the United States who continue to live a self-sufficient life) and Tibetans, and the results showed that the Masai people of Kenya felt the happiest among them.

Among them, there was one story that left a strong impression on me.

This is how the Maasai, both men and women, view themselves and others.

I am beautiful
And you are also beautiful
But I am a little bit more beautiful than you are!

While acknowledging that both myself and others are beautiful, I also accept myself as a special and beautiful being among them.

I felt their dignity there. Even if they are labeled as "poor" from an international perspective, they live with dignity and according to their own values.

It seemed to me that beyond this state of being lies "happiness" that fills the heart.

Incidentally, the same can be said of the Turkana people, as the Maasai are nomadic livestock herders and share the same lifestyle as the Turkana people.

I wonder how many Japanese people have this feeling today.

Are we so focused on comparing ourselves to others that we fail to appreciate the beauty that lies within ourselves?

In addition, there is one more thing I think.

The beauty I felt when I saw the Turkana people was,

In reality

The moment I spotted pink primroses blooming on the roadside
The moment the sun sets, painting the snowy mountains a deep red
The moment I spotted the full moon in the night sky

It is similar to the beauty I find in the works of art and nature, and I experience it when I instinctively catch the beauty of the vitality that nature exudes in an instant. It is a feeling that goes beyond words.

In the land of Turkana, where untouched nature stretches out, they still live in coexistence and harmony with nature, even in harsh environments.

As they walk with their livestock towards the endless horizon, they are surrendering themselves to the great flow of nature, truly synchronizing and assimilating with nature.

I can't help but think that this is because the beauty of the Turkana people living in the present is expressed both internally and externally through the purity and physicality of nature that lives within them.

They're so cool!

I then left my job in development aid, a job I had held for the past 20 years.

I decided to live my life with the attitude of learning about the beautiful and dignified way of life and wisdom from nature and the coolness of Africa.

I cannot help but feel that this is a partnership that is important for our future and the future of the Earth.