Cataloguing the Heart

There is nothing more magical than the dappled sunlight of a 50+ year old garden. When I visited Kenya in January, I catalogued the plants, flowers, trees and birds in the garden of my mother’s childhood home, and identified over 40 unique species and varieties.

There is so much biodiversity in our little corner of the world. I catalogued everything from the Travelers Palm to White Yarrow. My personal favourites included the sweet scented Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow plant, (Brunfelsia latifolia) and the fuzzy fire of the Dwarf Chennile plant.

I also visited Samich, a magical place 1,000 meters into the Great Rift Valley, where I identified all manner of flora and fauna, including gum trees, sisal trees and the magnificent white necked raven. Just a few miles from Samich, my great great grandfather crossed on horseback, in a place that still bears his name (that is, until the tarmac road is completed, and the sign is removed).

The valley is home to many Indigenous peoples, including the Elgeyo, Tugen, Nandi and Kalenjin, to name a few.

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