I believe that one of the most important moments in life is what might be called a matter of hazard. For me, one of the most important hazard moments occurred when I was teaching at Nottingham University in the UK, and when the professor asked, ‘Would any of you young fellows like to go for two years in Kenya?’ I could have kept quiet; instead, I said Yes.
I have just enjoyed a couple of days in the company of Jagi Gakunju, who has, in the more common use of the term, spent a hazardous life. It is something he recognises and values; he calls his autobiography ‘Living on the Edge’. Hitchhiking in lonely places, climbing mountains, close encountering wild animals, cheating death – as well as having a very successful business career, he has done all those other things. But one crucial hazardous moment came when a friend suggested that he should spend his honeymoon with his wife, Liliane, at Lake Baringo. He said Yes. It was while he was there that a birdwatcher persuaded him to go on a boat outing with him.
