A Letter To My `Old' Friend

By Paul Mutuku

To the `Mankind' planet

P.O.Box, 13milion hectares down, Annually

Planet Earth

Thro’

United Nations HQ,  NY, United States

My dear old friend,

It is with much sadness that I write you this letter. Not that I usually do, but because of you, I am obliged to. I know it will find you well, even after making my thriving in our planet a living hell.

You remember when the creator first set you in the garden, what did he tell you? Wasn’t it that you were supposed to take care of me and the rest of the creation was it not so? You found me in total peace and good health and so were you when we first interacted. Many of my kinds showed you a lot of generosity, with the fruits nature could allow them to bring forth, and I was no exception! From the depths of our own `baskets’ we provided for you, never to complain, because you were at least paying us back by tending to our nourishment. Heaven was right before our vicinity, as we enjoyed each other’s company, Oh a great old friend you were!

*Fast forward many, many, many generations later, way ahead of our initial interactions.****

I am indeed tormented by the way our relationship has lost sense over time. The more I value you, master, the more you destroy me. I let you be the master because titles are all you yearn for while deep down I know I am your true master, and without me, you are no more! Yes, I determine many aspects of your life than you would, to me.

If you recall well after you broke our maker`s law of not eating fruits from one of our members, what was the first avenue you sought to conceal your nudity? My leaves, yes, you used them to cover your nakedness, and as a true pal to you, I let you. After all, friends are meant to help each other out. A twig, a branch, a bunch of leaves, or whatever it is you plucked off me, I considered a little wound that would heal quickly, as long as you got your dignity back.

Today, however, I think you have taken advantage of my silence, forgetting that my silence is far much louder that your screams. You see from my leaves and branches, you’ve overstayed my invitation quite a lot.  Look at your current generations, and tell me if my cry is not justified. They now consider me more of a commodity, a thing that is only worth doing business with, forgetting how vital I am to the ecosystem. Day after day, I hear loud machines in my territory, bringing down huge chunks of my own, and for what? ``We are paving room for development, settlement, farming,’’ is the excuse I hear them giving. Oh, but I am not against your development prospects at all, dear old friend. But you see you have left me nothing as a keepsake for what we used to be! By destroying me, you’re definitely destroying yourselves in disguise, or maybe you know, but do not care.  Quality air `grade 1’, I give you free of charge, your water systems, I sustain well, biodiversity, I am loyal to hold and provide. I even have best soils for your own farm production. But what do I get in return? You `walk’ on me like a piece of tissue paper (which is also a product from me, anyway).

For now, I say enough is enough, mankind. You are losing it all if you do not rectify your flaws. I am loyal enough to encourage you to go back to the basics and progress with the relationship we once had. The Creator tasked you to take care of the rest of your creation, and that is exactly what you got to do buddy! I have heard some of your members dawn to sustainability principles. This is what I am talking about, let such brilliant thoughts and ideas drive you as you restore nature next to what it used to be, if not to what it exactly used to be. Plant me, grow me, extend my territories and let us live together in harmony. You don’t want to die of complications I could otherwise have solved for you, simply because you assumed me and let my species go extinct. Imagine a world without me, too much heat, no water, no recreational places, no food production, no clean air , the list is so long. You wouldn’t want such, right?

Well, change your ways and let me see your action towards reclaiming your lost glory in me. You can do it. I have seen you give laws to slow down destruction on me, but that is not enough. Do not wait for my absolute demise, and then you only get nothing to show of my serene existence, apart from the blurry imaginations you’ll have to let your generations undergo. Conserve me, save me and save yourself.

 Get back home, I am waiting for you.

Yours loving,

The wounded forest!