From plaques to planting trees . . . and more

By Sophia Khakasa

A new culture is taking over in Kenya like forest fire in dry weather. It is the craze of planting trees at their loved ones’ funeral instead of flowers or permanent plaques.

The trees are planted according to the deceased person’s age at the time of death.

"It is a beautiful way to remember the deceased," says Wash Oliech, 60, a resident and farmer in Chemelil, Muhoroni.

"I hate plaques because they make you have a sad feeling every time you visit the home. Plaques remind one of the deceased every day. Some homes even look like cemeteries and this can be quite disturbing," Oliech observes, noting that trees act as windbreakers and provide a cool shade making the environment quite friendly.

picnic site

"Many families use the shade as a picnic site during memorials and the cool breeze makes one feel at peace with the environment," says Oliech.

Kisumu resident Caesar Odhiambo, 30, says he started a pawpaw tree planting project to sell to mourners.

He says he has sold more than 1,000 trees to mourners in Nyanza and Western Kenya.

He sells a treeling at Sh10.

One time, a mourner bought 200 trees to plant in memory of her father in Bungoma.

"She said her late father loved to eat pawpaw fruit as he sat under a pawpaw tree at home," recalls Odhiambo.

The trees are economically beneficial, too. Long after the funeral, the fruits can be sold for cash. The trees provide shade, attract beautiful birds and conserve the environment.

In some families, the planting of one or two trees has been a normal practice.

The latest culture officially began with the death of Nobel Laureate and environmentalist, Pro Wangari Maathai.

Seventy one trees were planted in her honour at Freedom Corner, to mark the age at which she died while another 71 million trees continue being planted all over Kenya to commemorate her. At a tree planting session at Uhuru Park’s Freedom Corner commemorating her life women planted 71 trees once again last November.

plant trees

During the function, Unep’s Amina Abdalla urged Kenyans to plant trees to conserve the environment.

"It is my plea to every one of you in Nairobi and other parts of Kenya, to make commitment to annually plant a minimum of 71 million trees for each year of her life, starting from today.

"In this way, we will contribute towards increasing Kenya’s forest cover while at the same time continue to instill in our communities the value of environmental conservation. This commitment will create a lasting legacy of Wangari Maathai’s great work for present and future generations," she urged.

death wishes

Early this year, late Environment Minister John Michuki’s family and Kangema people planted 10,000 trees in his memory and according to his death wishes.

And as coffins are loaded on to hearses, do not be surprised that among the most important luggage beside the corpse are tree or fruit seedlings to be fondly planted in memory of the departed.

Historically and culturally, trees are planted to commemorate major life events. The tree planting is a ritual that is associated with life.

A tree will germinate and grow to a mighty tree. Loved ones will nurture the tree. When they see the tree swaying with wind, they associate this with their loved one being around them.

For many people who don’t know how to console friends or family in mourning, a tree seedling gift is a good idea.

The fact that family and friends gather together to plant the tree(s) makes them have a sense of value to trees.

Unep and Kenya Forestry Services introduced noted that Kenyans were reluctant to plant trees despite campaigns encouraging them.

But when they told them to own trees by planting them in memory of their loved ones, it was an overnight success.

Friends usually compete to plant trees and actually enjoy the activity.

In addition, in many African communities trees are used as prayer sites. Some trees are also considered sacred.

Each member is usually assigned one tree to nurture throughout their lives. The tree bears the name of the person taking care of it.

This encourages the tree ‘owner’ to travel home at least once a year to check on the tree.

Sending off loved ones becoming sophisticated

Culture is dynamic. As the world develops and acquires new cultures and advanced technologies, Kenya has not remained behind.

It is no longer fashionable to break down and cry loudly at funerals. Funerals are well-planned from the start to the closing ceremony. The funeral committees come up with budgets which include catering, different uniforms for spouse, sons, daughters and grandchildren.

There are also specific designs for aunts, uncles, sisters-in-law and cousins, among others. There is provision for flowers and photography including video coverage.

Some time back, young people carried desks from the local primary school for mourners to use. The women usually sat on grass as the funeral progressed.

For some families, it is about sophistication with hired catering services, expensive tents and plastic chairs.

Some of the meals now served at funerals can only be found in five-star hotels and include pizza and interesting ones such as chicken in pineapple or tender steak sirloin in one thousand island sauce.

class

Since these funerals are about ‘class’ there is no more lining up of every relative to ‘say something’ about the deceased. In some cases, these relatives were carried away and revealed some dark family secrets.

Instead, one respected family member is often picked to read the eulogy, which lists the deceased’s achievements.

However, not everyone is doing this. There are those still holding traditional funeral ceremonies, where people scream and throw themselves in mud.