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My history teacher had the class learn some swahili words and make a children's book with the words. Here's the story part. Maybe later I'll upload the picture part!
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At the bottom of a great mountain, there was a small village. The people of this village feared the great mountain they called “Baba”, or father. It was said that many many years ago, the village was built by an old man that lived in the mountain almost as long as time itself. It was said the old man was a master of the mountain and that he commanded it to provide food, shelter and protection for the people of the village.

The watoto, or children of the village, sang songs and danced to the Ngoma, The Drum Dance. All the villagers gave heshima, great respect, to the Mountain Baba. But no one really knew much about the old man in the mountain. So they feared him even though they did not know him.

But the old man in the mountain was a kind-hearted man. He was not a master of the mountain, but rather a friend- the mountain’s rafiki. The mountain gave him a home, food, and water. It even gave him beauty, as water lilies known as yungi-yungi grew on the mountain.

The old man in the mountain would help any travelers who came to the mountain. He would smile and say to them, “Habari and Karibu! Hello and welcome!” Then he would give the travelers maji and chakula, the water and food of the Great Mountain.

The travelers always thanked the old man by saying asante, or thank-you. Then they would continue on their journey. The old man liked to help people, but he did not like how the villagers feared him. So the old man decided to visit the village and let them learn more about him.

The journey down the mountain was hard and tiring. Many times the old man felt like giving up, but he did not. He knew he had to reach his goal. So the mountain decided to help the old man. It made the wind blow to cool him and its tall rocks gave him shade from the hot sun.



At last, the old man reached the village at the bottom of the Great Mountain Baba. And what a shock to the villagers was he! He did his best to greet the surprised villagers, many of whom were very afraid. None of them had ever seen the old man in the mountain. It was a very great surprise.

For several suns and moons, the old man spent his time amongst the villagers, getting to know more about their utamaduni- their way of life. The more time the villagers spent with the old man, the more their fear of him began to fade. Little by little, the people of the village lost their fear of the old man in the mountain. They started to see him as their rafiki, and the watoto of the village laughed and played games with him.


Even though the old man enjoyed spending time with the villagers, the time he spent also started to make him feel sad. He knew the village was not his home. His home was the Great Mountain Baba. Little by little, the old man began to really miss his home in the mountain.

The old man knew he could not stay with the villagers forever. So he thanked the people of the village for their kindness and making the time he spent with them very enjoyable. And then he went back to his home in the mountain. And it said that to this day, the old man still lives in the great mountain, always willing to help those who need it.

The End

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