Recently a UN report predicted that nearly 70 percent of arable land will be subject to desertification by the year 2025, and, having a somewhat erratic mind, I was reminded of the story of Sarah and Abraham, who wandered in a desert and sought water, an ancient symbol for the origin of life.
The story of Sarah and Abraham is a special one, not only because it is a legend about the origin of the Arabs and the Semites, not only because it is crucial to Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism (After all, “Abraham” is almost a perfect anagram for “Brahman,” a Hindu priest, and, as we know, Abraham does some priest-like things…).
Sarah and Abraham are special because, in the Bible, they are the first to laugh and the only ones to laugh at God. Sadly, it wasn’t God’s intention to make them laugh; they laughed at God’s promise that Sarah, at the age of 90, would bear a child to Abraham, who was 100. Now, as you know, laughing at God is hardly a habit or character trait among any religious folks, so I treat this story as a prophecy about the kind of folk who are already coming.
Who is Sarah, the once-barren wife of Abraham? Among other things, Sarah is also African. She is also the Sahara. If I were to tell someone that the Sahara will one day cease to be barren, that it will be made into a garden, people would laugh. And yet, it is both possible and necessary, at least, according to environmental monitors and permaculture pioneers.
