His father was skeptical and said to Madiba, “My son, I can believe a lot of things, but trees do not speak…”
Madiba had to convince his dad and said, “I was not sure of it either, but come with me, dad, you will see, it’s true, trees do speak to human beings!”
Reluctantly, Father agreed to go visit the old Baobab tree. Father and son stood in front of the tree, silent and curious to hear the voice again.
Time passed, and nothing came.
Madiba said, “Oh great, sage, where are you? My father is here and doesn’t believe you can talk to human beings.”
A few seconds later, they heard a huge yawn… AHHH, you’re there. I was just taking a little nap.”
The wise old tree recognized Madiba’s father and said, “Ah, here you are, Masali. I am happy to see you in great shape with your clever son.”
Masali, Madiba’s dad, was really surprised!
He said, “So it was true. I thought the afternoon heat made me hear you speak to me. I apologize to you, O great sacred Baobab, village doctor. I now know what is true: if human beings really listen, we can hear the trees talking to us.” He turned to face his son and said, “My dear little warrior, my Madiba, my son, thank you for opening my eyes.”
The Baobab then instructed Masali, the father, to pick some monkey bread from the tree and take it back to the village. “Share my fruit harvest with your family, neighbors, and those who pass by, and don’t forget to take some leaves too. When the day comes, the leaves will be helpful to you or to someone else who will need some medicine.”
Then the wise old tree said to little Madiba, “Little one, could you kindly scratch my bark? I’m not very ticklish. You can peel some of the bark. It will also serve you if you have a stomach ache. And please come back to see me often. I have lived for hundreds of years and will keep standing for as long as you need me.”
Madiba and his father walked back home in silence. They had both understood something profound about the importance of living in harmony with nature.