Children ages 5-18 could enter (so poor Asa wasn't allowed to enter, although he still created a piece of artwork alongside his brothers), and they could submit anything creative like a picture or essay or craft or anything they could think of. The only stipulation was that submissions needed to center on the theme of extinction.
Caleb settled on an essay about bongos, a very endangered mountain antelope whose natural habitat is right next door to us in the Mount Kenya National Park (and also in the Congo). The species' numbers dropped so much in recent decades that they nearly became extinct. Conservation efforts have been successful in increasing their numbers but there's still much work to do to truly save the bongo. One of Caleb's greatest desires is to see a bongo in the wild. Not sure if that will ever happen since they're very shy creatures and live in the forests which obscure the chance to actually see them, but his desire remains steadfast. Here is his essay (with spelling and punctuation corrections by me):
"Bongos are the largest antelope in the Congo. They can weigh up to nine hundred pounds. There are only 100 left in the wild because of hunting their meat and skins. I'd rather see a bongo in the wild than a dead one in a museum."
Kai opted for a photo essay about orangutans, another extremely endangered species. He drew a picture on the front and wrote an essay on the back. It says:
"The orangutan's jungle home is being cut down and now they only live in two islands - Borneo and Sumatra - in Indonesia. They don't even live in all of the islands because they cut down so much trees. They cut the trees for farm land. I don't like that. Bye!"
And to no one's surprise, Asa drew a picture of a rhino. He loves drawing pictures of rhinos and I love each and every one! My 4-year old's art is one my great pleasures in life.
Asa's picture showcases his passion for rhinos, but it's also the result of memories of going to Ol Pejeta for the first time and meeting Najin and Fatu up close - the last two northern white rhinos on the planet. We took a trip to Ol Pejeta one year ago, in August 2019, in order to meet these rhinos in person and to learn about their story and what's being done to try and save their species. It was the experience of a lifetime. Ol Pejeta is less than 3 hours away from us and it was one of those things we just knew we had to do since we live so close to the conservancy. (And although I had every intention of posting photos from that day a year ago, I never got around to it and so I'm posting them now.)
Najin and Fatu are a mother-daughter duo who live in an expansive enclosure that's guarded round-the-clock to ensure their safety from poachers. Najin's father, named Sudan, was the last male northern white rhino who died in 2018 (of natural causes). So it's just these two lovely ladies that remain.
Any tourist at Ol Pejeta can drive by their enclosure and see Najin and Fatu from a distance through the fence. But we paid extra to drive directly into their enclosure and see them up close. A ranger came in our vehicle with us and brought a carrot treat for the rhinos so they came right up to our car. And the ranger told us all about the northern white rhino species. We learned so much that day!
Rhinoceroses are such beautiful creatures. Magnificent, prehistoric creatures that would live such peaceful lives if not for the constant threat of poaching. Rhino horn is still prized as a traditional medicine product in many cultures. Poachers kill rhinos just to cut their horns off and illegally sell them on the black market. It's a horrible fate for any of God's creatures, but especially mind-numbing given the complete falsehood of the idea that rhino horn has medicinal value. It does not. Rhino horn is made out of keratin - the same as our fingernails and hair - which means their horns never stop growing (although they can be filed down by rubbing their horns against something). There is absolutely no medicinal value in rhino horn. Nobody needs a rhino horn except a rhino!
In order to further protect these last two northern white rhinos, rangers de-horn Najin and Fatu every couple years by literally sawing off their horns. They take such a drastic measure to hopefully prevent poachers from being too interested in them by keeping the size of their horns to a minimum.
Poaching has led to Najin and Fatu being the last of their kind. And sadly, neither Najin or Fatu can carry a pregnancy. We were told one has a uteran problem and the other has sensitive feet from walking on concrete for several years at a zoo which precludes her from safely carrying the extra weight of a pregnancy. Because of that, neither of them will ever be able to save their species by themselves. That's why science stepped in.
Years ago, as conservationists thought ahead to the plight of this species, scientists took sperm from some males and froze it for future efforts to save the northern white rhino. Then, last year scientists harvested eggs from both Najin and Fatu which led to the successful creation of three embryos that are currently being stored in liquid nitrogen with the plan to implant them in surrogate mothers (of the southern white rhino species) in hopes of giving the northern white rhino species a chance at survival.
We were so honored to meet these beautiful creatures and hear their story.
Another place that greatly impacted us was the rhino graveyard and memorial site. Some rhinos are buried here, including Sudan, and the rest of the markers are memorials to every rhino that's been poached at Ol Pejeta. It was a sobering thing to see, particularly because each plaque gives the name of the rhino poached, as well as when and how it was done. It was educational for us and served to bolster our love for all of God's creatures and our desire to protect them from human hands bent on their destruction. We spent some time praying together as we sat there. Praying for protection for the rhinos of Ol Pejeta, and for their numbers to grow, and also gratitude that God gave us such incredible creatures to love and respect in the first place.
After that we turned to happier thoughts as we visited Baraka, the blind black rhino under the care and supervision of rangers. Visitors can meet him and give him a snack! Baraka (which means "blessing" in Swahili) is blind because of cataracts in one eye and because he literally lost an eye due to a battle with another rhino several years ago. We were delighted to spend some time with him.
At the end of the day we had another amazing, once-in-a-lifetime experience. We got to feed the chimps at the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary! The sanctuary is a haven for chimps who've been rescued from the illegal pet trade. Chimpanzees are not native to Kenya, but Ol Pejeta has become home to 36 chimps who've been rescued from several different countries. All of these chimps suffered severely at the hands of humans but now live in peace and safety with constant care from rangers. It's an inspiring place that reminded us that good people are doing good things to bring good out of evil around the world. The sanctuary was created with the combined efforts of Ol Pejeta, Kenya Wildlife Service, and the Jane Goodall Institute. Jane Goodall is one of the boys' heroes, so it felt all the more appropriate to visit a place she had a hand in establishing.
We joined the rangers as they carried the evening meal to the chimps, and the boys took turns throwing fruit into the enclosure. The chimps were loud and very entertaining! They ate papaya, bananas, yams, and more.
The rangers somehow kept track of which chimps had eaten what, and so directed the boys to toss fruit to certain chimps that still needed their bananas or whatnot. It was amazing how well known the chimps are to the rangers. We were told all their names and their personalities and how old they are, etc. These chimps are well taken care of.
This particular chimp is named Uruhara. Jane Goodall rescued him from Burundi a couple decades ago, and she was able to visit him in 2018 when she came to Ol Pejeta. It was surreal to meet a chimp that Jane Goodall herself rescued!
Ever since that first trip, Ol Pejeta has held a special place in our hearts. It does a remarkable job promoting and modeling wildlife conservation, and our boys were very excited to participate in The Art of Survival Contest. We have ongoing conversations in our house about how to cherish and take care of God's creation, how to appreciate it and respect it as God's gift to us. Caleb and Kai currently want to be naturalists when they grow up, and I wouldn't be surprised if that actually comes to pass. There are many reasons I'm thankful for their chance to spend these years in Kenya. Their regular exposure to wildlife and ever-increasing love for it is one of the greatest reasons.
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