Dar es Salaam, March 14 -- DEAR nephew Milambo,

Warm greetings to you from the bustling and often bewildering city of Dar es Salaam.

I hope this letter finds you in good health and high spirits in our beloved village of Ukumbisiganga, surrounded by the warmth of family, friends and the familiar landscapes of our ancestral land in Tabora region.

As I sit down to write these words, my thoughts travel back to the quiet paths of the village, the wide-open skies and the comforting rhythm of life that we all cherish there. First of all, I pray that you and everyone at home are doing well under the watchful protection of our Nyamwezi ancestors.

May the spirits of those who came before us continue to guard the village and guide the young ones...