Embracing change a world away
"I've got a proposal to make," she said. I was talking to the better half of the couple my wife Tracy and I spend the most time with, and my wife's closest friend. I sometimes call her the "Booker" for her prolific ability to keep us traveling by planning some great trips for our friend group.
"I'm ready," I replied, but the Booker said the plan wasn't finished yet and when it was she actually wanted to make a formal presentation to our group. I'd just have to wait.
A few weeks later on a Saturday morning over coffee she brought out an actual PowerPoint presentation. I was impressed. "The Great Migration," she started. She'd always dreamed of seeing it and for a couple logistical reasons she thought the window of opportunity was open. Now, I've watched enough National Geographic TV to know the Great Migration is the epic annual trek of roughly a million wildebeests across the grasslands of Africa, but beyond knowing such a spectacle occurs I knew nothing of when, where or how to see it. She continued: the best time to see this wonder of the natural world was in September (14 months from her proposal), the best place to see it was Tanzania's Serengeti National Park, and she had worked out the details including the cost, which when I heard it I thought wasn't bad.
"I'm in," I replied immediately. Tracy, however, being the actual adult in our relationship, tapped the brakes. She asked when we had to make a decision and the Booker said the first payment would be due in a few weeks. We would talk about it. It was a long trip for us -- 13 days in total, 8 in the bush with no travel adjustments and limited communications. Ethan would be starting high school around the time of the proposed trip. We have never left him this long. Plus, it was Africa -- we wouldn't be able to respond to issues at home if they came up. Tracy was justifiably nervous about the idea, but in the end we decided this might be the only opportunity for such a grand adventure with friends. I am writing this column on the airplane on the way home.
There is something about Africa, and something about Tanzania in particular. The land simply exclaims adventure. The wildness, the openness, the wildlife. The continent remains mysterious to experience and I now understand why it is sometimes called the dark continent. Much of the land has an almost primeval feel.
Then there are the people. Our safari guide Billdad told us there are over 120 different tribes in Tanzania alone, and he said they all get along. "We can go anywhere and we will be welcome," he said, and he was right. In no other travels have I encountered the cultural welcomeness and generosity that I experienced in the people of Tanzania. It's as if their very culture compels them to be good hosts -- even the sometimes intimidating uniformed government agents would call me "brother" during interactions. I found their native Swahili to be a beautiful language, and as most children learn English in school I found their African English dialect also beautiful to listen to. The people of Tanzania exude a joyfulness that is difficult to describe and rare in my experience.
I would however be remiss and naive if I did not mention the poverty. Most of the rural communities and much of the outlying urban areas function at what can be best described as a subsistence level. Water and plumbing are most often absent in homes, as is electricity in many. The average per capita income in Tanzania is under $4 a day. At the remote northern gate of Serengeti National Park we experienced a woman being arrested for gathering firewood inside the park. Her hysterical and despondent lamentation was haunting. Billdad said she was desperate to feed her family, and he later told us 50% of children born in some parts of Africa will not see the age of five. And yet the joyfulness remains.
The Great Migration and the wilds of the Serengeti were amazing beyond description. Attempting to do so is outside the scope of this column and better handled by National Geographic, but seeing the animals of Africa we are so familiar with -- free in their natural environment -- had an almost spiritual component for a wildlife enthusiast like me. Africa changed me. I land in four hours and American life takes immediate hold again. I just hope the changes stick.
The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. Stock investing includes risks, including fluctuating prices and loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or preserve against loss. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. Marc Ruiz is a wealth advisor and partner with Oak Partners and registered representative of LPL Financial. Contact Marc at marc.ruiz@oakpartners.com. Securities offered through LPL Financial, member FINRA/SIPC.
