Today we had the privilege of  traveling to nearby Grahamstown for a day trip to Rhodes University. It was a beautiful campus with detailed architecture with an echo of  days gone by. We attended a lecture by Dr. Michelle Cocks who developed an educational awareness program called Inkcubek

o Nendalo Bio Cultural Diversity Education Program. Her presentation outlined how plants, animals and landscapes are reflected in local communities' their language,stories, religious  rituals and healing practices. The Xhosa culture is under threat and Dr. Cocks believes providing such information will find ways to protect and sustain cultural diversity.

We later traveled to Nombelelo Secondary School. We had the opportunity to be in the classroom with 10th grade learners and listen to a lecture by Mr. Mluleki Nkosi on South Africa's nine biomes; 6sixof which are located in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Students were given outlines of the lecture and were extremely attentive to the presentation.  Mr. Nkosi gave much of the lecture in the Xhosa language occasionally throwing in English.  As he spoke my mind raced to identify many of the words I had a grasp of from our weekly Xhosa language lessons at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. Paying close attention was a must as he spoke quickly and with direct precision.  I can know understand how many of our American students must feel as we teachers parade through our lessons at a marching speed. We visited the schools Medical Plant Garden as the teachers identified many of the plants used for healing in the Xhosa culture. Plant uses ranged from de-worming dogs, skin moisturizers, and good luck beans to ensure one never runs out of money.

We bid farewell to our gracious hosts and returned to Rhodes University for a specially prepared lunch, The botanical plant garden was the perfect backdrop for our lunch.  The warm enveloping us as we sat on the porch with a view quite similar to the Hidden Garden. Once again we were on the move an anticipating the long awaited walk in the forest.  As we drove steeply up the winding row higher and higher we all noticed that there was no forest anywhere to be seen. Several of the learners from the school accompanied us and as we stepped from the van we followed them down the gravel row.  As if it appeared out of no where they descended onto a path. As we followed closely behind we found ourselves in the bush. It was unsuspected and magical all at the same time.  The stones led deep into the forest as one might feel traveling down a rabbit hole with no specific destination in mind.  As we approached our landing place Dr. Michelle Cocks was sitting anticipating our descent. The students were perched upon rocks like fixtures in the forest.  As we all took our seats Mr. Nkosi began unraveling the importance of the forest to the Xhosa culture. "We must protect nature if we are to preserve our culture." As we all breathed in his compassion for his words we finally began to understand that our traditions, people and beliefs define our very existence. If we neglect nature what are the consequences for ourselves and future generations?