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The Tree of Life Project
Using narrative ideas in work with
vulnerable children in Southern Africa
By Ncazelo Ncube
Ncazelo Ncube works for REPSSI, a regional capacity-
building organization working in thirteen countries in
East and Southern Africa to enhance the provision of
psychosocial care and support to children affected by
HIV/AIDS poverty and conflict. The countries comprise
Mozambique, Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Malawi,
Zimbabwe, Zambia, South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland,
Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania. Ncazelo. Ncazelo can
be contacted c/o REPSSI, Box 1669, Randburg 2125,
Johannesburg, RSA, Tel: +27 11 998 5820,
Email: ncazelo@repssi.org
Website: http://www.repssi.org/
This paper describes the use of narrative ideas in work with
vulnerable children in Southern Africa. How can the lives of children
who have experienced significant losses be responded to in ways
that are not re-traumatising and that bring to light children’s own
skills and knowledge? What sorts of exercises can be used in camps
for vulnerable children? How can children be provided with significant
experiences that do not separate them from their families, values
and cultural norms? This paper describes a creative adaptation of
the ‘Tree of Life’ exercise informed by narrative therapy principles
and practices.
Keywords: children, southern Africa, HIV/AIDS, camps, grief, loss, trauma
The International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work
2006 No.1 www.dulwichcentre.com.au 3
INTRODUCTION trapped in the territories of life that made them to
seek counselling in the first place.
I have been working with orphans and Looking at the work that we have been doing
vulnerable children for at least six years now. with bereaved children and communities, I now
Anyone working in this field in Southern Africa will realise that part of our problem was basing our
have many heart-breaking stories to tell about the practices on the western notions of catharsis. Some
hopelessness and desperate situations of illness, of our work has been informed by ideas that
parental death, and the subsequent suffering of bereaved children and communities are not given
millions of children who are faced with the reality of platforms to express their grief and therefore have
living their lives without their parents. HIV/AIDS has feelings and emotions trapped deep inside them
robbed numerous families of their joy and zeal to which need to be vented out. This kind of thinking
live fulfilled lives. I have worked as a child and has been very dominant in our work. We have for
community counsellor as well as a trainer for a a long time seen ourselves as playing a role in
number of organisations within Southern and East providing the space for trapped feelings and
Africa whose purpose is to support the most emotions to come to surface. The reality of such
vulnerable children, families and communities falling expressions, however, has been clearly overwhelming
through the traditional safety nets. In this work, for both the individuals that seek our help and the
I have found myself not only having to grapple with counsellors providing support services.
helping vulnerable children and communities but This paper documents a way of working with
also being overwhelmed by expressions of burn-out, children using the ‘Tree of Life’ tool which we have
defeat, struggles, and feelings of incompetence often adapted through our engagement with narrative
expressed by practitioners working in this field. This ideas. Before I describe this, however, it may be
sense of incompetence has been further complicated helpful for me to provide some background
by our struggles to identify suitable tools, means, information about the work of Masiye Camp which
and methods that enable us to effectively counsel is where we will be using this new way of working.
and provide support to children and their families in
ways that are fulfilling to them and ourselves as the MASIYE CAMP
helpers. I have always been confronted with Masiye Camp is a Christian based organisation in
questions about how practitioners in the field should Zimbabwe that focuses on life skills development for
respond to the crying and wailing that they often orphans and vulnerable children. Children who attend
experience when having conversations with children the life skills camps are identified from various
and communities about their losses. I have found communities and referred to Masiye Camp
myself struggling to come up with satisfactory by different community based initiatives all around
answers and ideas to such questions. My colleagues Zimbabwe and even beyond the borders. What has
and I have often spoken about our experiences of made Masiye Camp a unique initiative has been the
defeat and incompetence particularly when faced involvement and participation of young people in
with such challenges and dilemmas. providing counselling services to their peers. Masiye
It is not easy to deal with a sense of failing Camp’s dream was, from its conception, to enhance
individuals who you know have faced significant the coping capacity of children affected by HIV/AIDS
struggles in their lives and who have come to seek and other emergency situations. Furthermore,
support from you. I have, however, come to realise Masiye’s vision has been to provide opportunities
that a lot of the struggles and limitations that we for disadvantaged children to develop life skills and
experience in our work are linked to structured experience equal opportunities in the social world.
approaches to counselling that often trap The majority of young people who serve as camp
practitioners and people seeking counselling services counsellors have experienced significant losses
into problem-saturated accounts of life. Such themselves. They are keen to provide support to
accounts often leave both the people seeking help their peers through sharing their own personal
and the counsellors feeling drained. For individuals experiences and journeys as orphans. The peer-to-
seeking counselling support they find themselves peer support takes place largely through group
4 The International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work
2006 No.1 www.dulwichcentre.com.au
therapy. An average camp has the capacity to take at • Children who come to the camp are linked to
least fifty children in a given time and runs for about support services such as legal services,
ten days. Children attend the camp in different age medical treatment, food security initiatives, etc.
groups; 6-11, 12-16, and 17+ including child-headed
households. Masiye’s work has been shared and DILEMMAS AND CHALLENGES
emulated by several organisations working with
vulnerable children in East and Southern Africa. The children who attend the camps are often
struggling with the effects of loss and bereavement,
A SUMMARY OF SOME OF THE abuse and neglect, family breakdown, and extreme
ACHIEVEMENTS OF MASIYE CAMP poverty. Involving young people in offering peer-to-
peer support has made many things possible, but
• Masiye Camp provides a place and it has also raised a number of challenges
opportunities for children to talk about their and dilemmas:
personal realities and experiences in the • The young people involved in offering
context of HIV/AIDS. This is not usually counselling services to their peers have
possible in their families and communities due experienced significant losses themselves.
to cultural beliefs and practices that inhibit If camp counsellors have to continuously
communicating with children on difficult issues revisit loss and listen to painful stories, their
such as death and HIV/AIDS. Such topics are involvement in camps can be re-traumatising
.
usually viewed to be taboo for them.
• Children are provided with opportunities to • We have noted with concern how young
share problems with their peers and learn people who have been through the camp, and
coping skills from each other. The camp is a who are then viewed as role models, are often
place where new relationships and good unable to sustain preferred ways of living.
memories are formed. We have observed young camp counsellors
• Masiye Camp provides children with a rare struggling with alcoholism, prostitution, poor
opportunity for fun and play that is not always planning, and having difficulty in taking steps
possible in communities where most children to shape their lives and their future.
have to deal with taking care of ill parents and • Many of the children who come to camp are
have numerous household responsibilities. in conflict with their families and struggle to
• The camp program is designed in such a way fit in when they go back home after the camp
that children have opportunities to receive experiences. Are our programs that work with
career guidance, practical lessons on day-to- children outside the context of their families
day living such as the art of budgeting, first and communities having the effect of
aid, development of skills in arts, etc. alienating children from their families and
• Masiye is committed to breaking the silence communities? If this is a possibility, the
around HIV/AIDS and focusing on loss and question to ask is: How can children be
bereavement especially in the lives of children; effectively supported without separating them
this makes it a unique initiative as these from their families, values and cultural norms?
issues are usually seen as not important for • How can such a camp experience go beyond
children’s lives. just having a good time but also meaningfully
• Young people in the Masiye program are seen assist children to take steps in shaping their
as active agents of change in their lives and lives and future?
their communities. • How can the camp program ensure that the
• Children experience life skills development diverse experiences and personal desires of
through play, outdoor experiential learning children in a group context are catered for?
activities. Support is also provided to children • How can community ownership of programs be
who are heading households. achieved? Currently the larger responsibility for
The International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work 5
2006 No.1 www.dulwichcentre.com.au
B
ranches
orphans and vulnerable children’s programs Branches: The branches of the tree were a prompt to
seems to rest upon organisations and is elicit the child’s thoughts, ideas and wishes about
not linked back to local communities as the direction which he/she would like go in life.
it could be.
Fruits:
• In most of our communities there is a strong Fruits: The fruits stood for the achievements that the
belief that young children are passive child had accomplished in his or her life; the things
recipients of life and are not affected by that he/she was proud of.
issues of death. Our experience has differed.
Bugs:
How can narrative practices enhance the work Bugs: The bugs of the tree, which would sometimes
we do with children? eat parts of the fruit and destroy the leaves, were
• Because the program works with a lot of designed to represent the problems and challenges
children at any given time, we feel that group that children were facing in their day-to-day lives.
approaches are critical. We would like to Children were introduced to each of these
explore how we can use narrative ideas in metaphors as they drew their own ‘Tree of Life’.
working with children in groups. Once children had completed their drawings they
THE ‘TREE OF LIFE’ AT MASIYE CAMP then presented it in front of the other children.
Sometimes the camp counsellors would ask
One of the key tools we have been using in our questions to draw out each of these themes.
work with children at Masiye Camp has been the
‘Tree of Life’. I introduced this tool to Masiye Camp I was quite drawn to this ‘Tree of Life’ exercise
in 2003 during a training program that was run at for various reasons:
the camp for practitioners who are involved in the • The children who were initially introduced
care and support of children affected by HIV/AIDS in to the exercise became quite engaged in
East and Southern Africa. I had been introduced to thinking through and reflecting about
the ‘Tree of Life’ by a colleague and friend, Jonathan their lives.
Brakarsh, and we had used it to learn from children • The Tree of Life seemed to engage all children
about the kinds of concerns they had about their and, because it does not rely on the spoken
lives during times of change, such as HIV/AIDS. word, all children (even those who were shy)
In this exercise we would invite children to draw were able to come up with stories and rich
their ‘Tree of Life’ with particular attention paid to descriptions about their lives.
the following themes:
• It made story-telling possible and the children
Roots: seemed to be proud about various aspects of
Roots: Children were invited to think about and
write on their Tree of Life significant figures from their stories e.g. roots (origins, ancestry, etc)
their ancestry, origins and family history. and their achievements as expressed through
the fruits of their trees.
Trunk: • The Tree of Life brought out the creative
Trunk: The trunk of the tree was a prompt for
children to draw representations of significant events abilities of children. It was a fun experience
that had shaped their lives: these were either and the children enjoyed drawing.
positive events or events that could be regarded as • I felt educated about children’s lives and their
difficult or that evoked a painful memory. experiences without putting in too much effort.
• The children were also able to talk about
Leaves:
Leaves: The leaves of the tree represented the difficulties that they had experienced
important people or significant relationships in an in their lives.
individual’s life. At Masiye Camp we introduced the
metaphor of fallen leaves to represent important For these reasons I encouraged Masiye Camp
people that had been lost to the child (e.g. parents and other organisations to use the ‘Tree of Life’ in
who had died). their work with children. Masiye Camp has been
6 The International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work
2006 No.1 www.dulwichcentre.com.au
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