We realized that this traditional story from Kenya fit in so well with the theme of this CD that we decided to finally include a story on one of our recordings. When we perform this story, Jenny brings a bundle of sticks and gets kids in the audience to actually try to break them. We always end it with the chorus of our friend Bev’s powerful song.
The Stick Story (trad. Kenya) / Together We Can Move Mountains
Credit: (Beverly Grant, Bev Grant Music © 1976, ASCAP)
Album: We're All In This Together
Lyrics:
The Stick Story (trad. Kenya)
Once upon a time, in a small village in Kenya, there lived a farmer. He worked hard all day growing his vegetables and tilling the soil. He had a large family - 13 children! Most of the time they were very good boys and girls. They helped out around the house and the farm. They did chores, fetched water, and planted and picked the vegetables. Lately, however, the farmer had noticed that his children were getting in fights and he didn’t like it one bit. Do you ever fight with your sister or brother?
One day, the farmer was out working in his garden when he heard a couple of his children fighting. He heard name calling, yelling, and crying. He thought, “Enough is enough! I need to do something about this.”
So he called all of his children out to the garden. He gave hugs and wiped away tears. He said, “My children, I would like each one of you to go into the woods over there and find a stick. Bring it back and sit in a circle.” The children had no idea what their father wanted with this crazy request, but they followed his directions and went to the woods to fetch sticks.
When all the children were seated in a circle, the father said, “My children, I want to show you something.” He went up to his daughter and said, “Please break your stick in half.” She did it, no problem. Then he went up to his son and said, “Please break your stick in half.” He did it, no problem. He went around to each of his thirteen children and asked them to break their sticks. Each one of them did it, no problem. Then he collected all the sticks into a bundle.
He went to his first daughter with the bundle of sticks and asked her to break the bundle. She tried, but couldn’t do it. He went to his son and asked him to break the bundle of sticks. He couldn’t do it either. He went around to each of his children, but none of them could break the bundle of sticks.
The farmer said, “My children, alone we can be broken, but together we are strong! How can our family be strong?”
Children: “Together!”
Farmer: “How can our family be strong?”
Children: “Together!”
Farmer: “How can our family be strong?”
Children: “Together!”
Together We Can Move Mountains (by Bev Grant, Bev Grant Music © 1976, ASCAP)
(Chorus:)
Together, we can move mountains
Alone, we can't move it all [originally: “move at all”]
(repeat)