FABLES TEACH LESSONS. Fairy tales offer happy endings. And African proverbs impart wisdom.
Last Wednesday evening, Joseph Mbele, retired St. Olaf College professor of post-colonial literature, cultural consultant, author and storyteller, shared three African proverbs during a literary event at Books on Central. This man, who calls himself an African and a Tanzanian, held the rapt attention of attendees gathered in the used bookshop in the heart of downtown Faribault, home to many Somalis.
THE CROCODILE
While I enjoyed the two African folktales Mbele told, I really appreciated the proverbs. They are, by nature of a proverb, succinct. A few words carry a whole lot of punch. First up, this proverb: “Before you cross the river, don’t insult the crocodile’s mouth.”
Immediately the image of a crocodile’s sharp teeth popped into my mind. As it should have. This proverb, Mbele explained, is about being respectful to people in our relationships and in life in general. Be anything but respectful and we risk negative consequences. Snap.
THE BLACKSMITH
Second up this African proverb: “It’s because of man that the blacksmith makes weapons.” Thinking in African terms, the weapons would be knives and spears. I thought of guns. Mbele repeated the proverb, letting it sink into our brains. “It’s because of man that the blacksmith makes weapons.” The lesson here, Mbele said, is that we can be better than this—be kind, helpful and supportive—so we don’t need to bear arms/weapons. That’s an oversimplification, of course. But proverbs are not meant to be complex.
THE VISUALLY-IMPAIRED
Third, Mbele recited this proverb: “The one-eyed person only thanked God after he saw a blind person.” As someone with vision issues, that hit home. The proverb is a way of teaching gratitude, Mbele said. The contrast between seeing with only one eye and total blindness put the situation in perspective. The thought that there’s always someone who has it worse probably flitted through the minds of everyone in the bookshop.
THE STORYTELLERS
Mbele talked about the tradition of Africans sitting around telling stories to entertain and teach. Languages like his native Matengo, an indigenous language in Tanzania, are oral, not written. As he spoke, I began to understand the importance of folktales in African life. Stories connect people and, like proverbs, teach lessons.
Applied to my own community, Mbele explained that Somali men gathering on downtown Faribault street corners are simply socializing and sharing stories and are not to be feared. “It’s un-African to be by yourself,” he said of a culture that focuses on family and togetherness.
He even went so far as to say an African could be considered evil or a witch if living alone. That surprised me, but drove home the cultural importance of community and family. Now if only everyone in Faribault could hear these proverbs and insights from this native Tanzanian. Then perhaps they would not fear that which they don’t understand, like the Somali elders gathered on street corners downtown telling stories, sharing news or simply sitting in each other’s presence.
© Copyright 2026 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Reflections on diversity & growing community in Faribault December 30, 2025
Tags: art, commentary, community, Congregational Church of Faribault United Church of Christ, diversity, Faribault, Jason Rainey, Minnesota, multi-cultural community, mural, painting, reflections, Shirley Rainey
WHAT ARE WE without community? The answer: alone.
We, at our very core, need each other. In times of celebration. In times of challenges. Even in times of great division. Without friends, family, neighbors and others, we are but individuals without community.
And in Faribault, among the many murals adorning public spaces in the downtown area, one piece of art stands out as representing community. That is a free-standing mural placed on the west side of the Congregational Church of Faribault United Church of Christ this past summer. It seems an appropriate focal point to end 2025 and begin the new year.
The artwork, created by Shirley Rainey and her son Jason, features outstretched arms rising from the earth against a backdrop red heart and blue sky. “The mural represents the importance of coming together to share burdens and triumphs, while reaching for our highest selves,” Rainey said in an artist’s statement.
I see that in the mural. But I also see a community of diversity. The Raineys show that in assorted skin tones, clothing, hand sizes and even henna painted on a hand. I love that about this art, this intentional, varied depiction of Faribault as it is—gloriously diverse.
That said, I am well aware of the racial tension (and that’s a tamped down word) in my community. I wish it didn’t exist, that we all got along, welcomed and embraced one another. We are, after all, just people who live, love, work, play, laugh, cry… The list of commonalities we share as humans goes on and on. Yes, we are different, too. But differences seen as negative, those we create.
We can learn from that church painting. We can choose to love one another, as portrayed in the over-sized backdrop red heart. We can stand side-by-side and raise our hands to help one another. We can see, in those arms stretched skyward, the possibilities in building community. In that blue sky, we can envision not only our personal dreams, but the dreams of all who call Faribault home.
Faribault is a multi-cultural community, always has been. From early settlement days to today, people have come here from around the world to start anew. Whether French, Irish, German, Scandinavian, Latino, Asian, Sudanese, Somalian or any of many other ethnicities, this place has become home. We can choose to create community or not.
I hope in 2026 that Faribault can build a better, stronger, more unified community which celebrates our commonalities, and our differences.
© Copyright 2025 Audrey Kletscher Helbling