Begging The Governor

BEGGING THE GOVERNOR

The story of a Danish noblewoman, Baroness Blixen, was made known in the movie "Out Of Africa." She lived in Kenya as the owner of a large Coffee plantation.

There was a tribe known as the Kikuyu tribe that Blixen had grown to love. Some of the Kikuyu lived on a part of the plantation. As a result of financial obstacles that followed World War I, Blixen lost the plantation as well as that part of the plantation where the Kikuyu lived.

The new land owner was not concerned with anything but the land. This lack of concern meant that the Kikuyu would be a tribe without a home. Blixen lacked the money to buy back the land that she had lost. She then tried to take her cause to preserve the land of the Kikuyu tribe before government agencies but to no avail.

The movie "Out Of Africa," then depicts her passion and compassion for the Kikuyu tribe at a reception of the new Governor of Kenya. She was shameless in her endeavor as she disregarded “protocol” bypassing others in the crowd until at last she went to the Governor himself , fell on her knees, grabbing the governor’s hand as she pleaded for the Kikuyu. Guests who seemed to be embarrassed by her actions tried to get her up as continued to persist that the governor look into the matter as she asked for him to give her his word.

It was then that the Governor’s wife stood up and stated, “You have mine” (word). She succeeded.

SOURCE: John Williams in "The Persistent Widow" on www.sermoncentral.com. Citation: Douglas F. Kelly. "If God Already Knows, Why Pray?" Brentwood: Wolgemuth & Hyatt, Publishers, 1989, pp. 155-156).