Holidays

I feel as if there are some things that haven't been said, but expression seems so difficult now. Maybe I’m thinking about coming home for the first time, and wondering, yet again, how WILL I share this with those that I love?

I only have one month left here, which is a very short time in African standards. I’m wondering if anything I’ve done here will have any lasting effect. Not that I know much about farming and agriculture, but I can totally envision Permaculture falling into disarray very quickly again. (It’s not perfect, but it’s better than it was…) I don’t think I am being cynical either, but that’s just the way things go here. How do I explain this? There are many many factors that we cannot completely understand. If someone does anything that departs from cultural norms, there is tremendous pressure to revert. People are expected to fail, to not be blessed by their ancestors, etc. In order to introduce anything different, it must be shown to succeed over many many years. Even then, there will likely be neighbors and relatives that scoff and scorn. [This is cultural change, which takes generations. The same way that racism in the American South has taken generations to change, and hopefully continues to heal over time.]

Ghani is the baas in perma, but he has had no formal training. The guy who was head man before Ghani was fired for stealing and being seriously lazy (despite the fact that he was otherwise qualified). This happened right after Kevin left for the States for 6 months to fundraise. Ghani’s grasp of agriculture comes from Shona culture and from what he picked up from a former employee (Mr. Pamire “Pom-erie”, whose specialty was trees, and was great teaching natural science to the kids.) He’s going out on a limb every day that he comes to perma, and he’s expected to lead the workers as if he knows what he’s doing. As he says, “If I’m doing something different, they don’t ask me. They think they already know what’s best, and they expect bad things [from perma].” I have a feeling that my presence, clearly respecting him and talking over decisions, has given greater weight to his authority. Although I am not an agricultural specialist by any means, I have received more education than most of these workers will in their entire life. They know this, respect me, and think I know things that I don’t. It’s a very strange position to be in. At least they get to laugh at my Shona! “Nasi weri jakanaka!”

Have I told you that I’ve been living with Rory and Judy for the past month or so? There were too many visitors, so I got the boot! Haha. It’s been great! When they came to Eden, they had no place to live. They wanted to build a pretty simple thatch roofed house with the traditional ‘stucko’ walls. Kevin, however, took their plans and ran with it. The house pushes the limits of what you can do with thatch roofing and stucko. The roof had to be done a couple of times before they really perfected the thatch job (so it doesn’t leak). Living with them is generally much more peaceful. There are less people running around, nice places to sit and escape, and generally Rory and Jude are more laid back. The conversation’s usually interesting because we come from different cultures.

This morning we talked about dysfunctional families, and generational patterns of abuse, hurt, and sin. Dave (you can look back in my blogs if you really want to know who he is) comes from a pretty crazy family, and can really see how his home life affects his siblings’ life as adults. It was interesting (and maybe a bit morose) to see how family problems are somewhat universal. Like I’ve said before, every culture has its positive and negative aspects.

Rory and Jude dug up an old booklet about Shona culture that was really informative. It was written by the Rhodesian government to help white employees understand the cultural differences with their Shona employees. It’s actually pretty dang respectful, and not racist at all. An example… in the Shona culture, the man who actually conceived you is only one of your fathers. All of his brothers are also responsible for your upbringing and are called your father. They showed how this can cause problems because a Shona man may ask for leave for the death of their ‘father’ more than once. As Europeans (or Americans for that matter) this would be considered very suspicious, and the employee may be fired.

Have I really ever described permaculture very well? It was started on a hectare of the worst land around. It slopes down to the dam (what they call the lake that is made from a dam), and the soil is mostly the product of eroded granite. Everything is planted perpendicular to the slope, and as you move down the hill there are rows of fruit trees that help control erosion and act as barriers to keep pests from easily moving through the garden. At the top of perma there are guavas, and a couple of lemon and lime trees. The rest of the lines are either banana or pawpaw. Beds are constructed perpendicular to the slope that are theoretically straight, level, and ~1.5m wide. (All of the beds now are currently a lot narrower than this. Each time the beds get reshaped they get narrower and narrower.) There are pathways between beds, and a ‘path’ that runs up the middle of perma from the bottom of the slope to the top. Theoretically one should never walk in the beds… haha. Most things get planted in beds like this, but some do not. The squash and cucumber get planted in small hills, and eventually get mulched heavily so you can’t see any hill that remains. Many of the beans get planted in plots that are not long rectangles, but large squares. As long as they are planted in rows perpendicular to the slope, they should be okay.

Updates from the gardening world: Our butternuts look fantastic, and we should harvest the first bunch in a couple of days. Almost all of the beans that we planted (which is a lot) look great. They were planted for several reasons—cover crop, soil improvement, and a source of protein for the kids. It was some legitimate work getting this planting accomplished: reminding, getting seed, reminding, getting the pipes (ie hose), reminding, etc, etc. Like I’ve said before, communication in Shona culture goes in circles, so you have to say something several times before anything happens. The only bean type that didn’t germinate as well were the cowpeas. Perhaps they needed more sunlight?

An entire section near the bottom of perma has been planted since I’ve been here: beans, rape, cabbage, cucumbers, squash, tomatoes, mustard… We’ve actually harvested rape 2 or 3 times already, and the whole section just looks so happy. It feels good to see something from beginning to ‘completion,’ even though we will be getting much more food from this section. We’ve also FINALLY succeeded in getting more manure from a nearby farm, and getting cut grass gathered from around Eden to use as mulch. It only took a month or more.

The three sisters project is slowly coming along. The maize is maybe a foot and a half tall, and the beans/peas are germinating or already three inches high. The project in general was slowed a bit due to water shortage. [When the power is off, the pump for the well doesn’t work. If the generator is being run for the sewing class or computer class, the pump should work but often gets tripped. Plus, there are now all kinds of labour running around putting together the irrigation system from the dam. Pipe and other pieces frequently go missing, so this all has to be set up and taken down every day…]

We have, in fact, started a vermiculture project. The four trashbins full of worms, compost, and manure are now sitting under the thatch roofing of their ‘shed.’ [I don’t know what you would call this building in America?] We don’t have any compost currently ready (which should NOT be the case, but you can only fight so many battles at once), so we’ve been feeding them mostly manure.

It’s a joint effort right now. Primarily Aaron, the greenhouse guy, will be tending them when I am gone. Sariwo, Rory and Jude’s gardener, will mostly act as worm security guard. [People will gladly take the worms for fishing in the dam.] Sariwo’s not as ‘with it’ as Aaron is, but he’s supposed to be learning as well. Right now Aaron, Rory, Sariwo, and I are all doing our bit. Dave is the resident worm expert and will stop by once a week to check up.

Dave, the local worm expert, came by the other day to check them. One of the bins was wetter than ideal, and he thinks it’d be good to diversify their food a bit. They’ve also been getting too much food, so we’re going to wait a couple of days before feeding them again. On the upside, the worms are breeding in one of the bins, and they are all growing, growing, growing. Until compost is ready I’m going to mix wet manure with the small compost remnant we do have. I also fed them a bit of rollo meal to them yesterday. This is the corn meal that is used to make sadza or porridge. [Porridge is pretty much the same as sadza, but cooked a bit differently so it’s not as thick. It reminds me of grits.] This will hopefully help the bins dry out a bit, especially the one, and it will give them something else to munch on other than manure.

I’ve found a piece of cardboard that I want to turn into a reminder sign for the worms. “Check moisture!” “Are there ants?” “Do they need food?” I’ve asked Jude to draw something funny on it, like a cow’s rear end or worms enjoying stacks of poo.

Right now the kids are on holiday from school for about a month. Some will travel to see family, but most stick around here. The older kids will work in various areas around Eden. Susan’s also continuing her sewing class, and many will still be practicing for Convention. Convention is a big gathering of students from southern Africa. They compete in a large variety of events: athletics, sewing, photography, music, dance, public speaking, etc. There’s also an international convention, but I think that you have to first qualify at the more local convention. We also won’t be having girls’ Bible study, which I will miss.

At the moment everyone’s on holiday for Easter Friday through Monday. It’s been nice. I’ve been sleeping more, reading a lot, and playing games with the Fortiscue’s. Over the past few weeks I’ve started going on bike rides with Rory and Dave, which has been super fun. Most of the time we have to ride after work, leaving at fifteen after five and returning in the dark. Riding in the dark is actually pretty exciting, and seeing the sunset is always nice. The roads are all dirt, some better than others. Usually we can only go on long rides on Sundays, but because of the holiday we got to go on a long ride yesterday.

It’s amazing that they actually get me out of my bed at 5:45am, but it happens. It’s honestly beautiful… seeing Zimbabwe as the sun is coming up and feeling the cool breeze billowing through your shirt. Of course, you also get covered in reddish dust and hopefully absorb some protein from the grit in your teeth. It’s super fun! and makes me feel more alive than most things here. Yesterday was a 46?k ride through some really beautiful country. Part of it was downhill on seriously overgrown road— grass whacking you in the face, never knowing where the path is going next. The path eventually spit us back out into a trench on the side of a larger road. I got to see the small town of Nangadza, where Rory and Judy used to live (and where Ozi was born). The town is now practically owned by Mugabe’s nephew. We also get to see many tiny villages comprised of only a few huts. Kids usually come running out yelling, “Bye-Bye” or “How are YOU?” Although there are trees, this part of Zimbabwe is a lot of grassland— rolling hills of TALL grass with trees interspersed. Until you look closely the landscape actually reminds me of Tennessee. Some places have more trees than others-- near rivers and low areas, as well as hills with steeper slopes (ie no farming there).

But speaking of holiday, I’m about to leave for a tea & rusk picnic. [Rusks are like biscotti.] We’re going to a rock outcropping that Rory and Jude visited frequently before they were kicked off their farm. They still visit the spot, but not as often. On holiday is the perfect time to go!

As a last note, I’ve been feeling a lot more cynical and pessimistic about life recently. Kind of like my thoughts about perma—will anything I’ve done make a difference? “Why should I learn any more Shona? I won’t be here much longer, and the chances of being able to come back are slim.” “These kids just see me as another white visitor that won’t stick around.” I can’t possibly invest in long-term friendship with these teen girls, because I won’t be here… etc, etc, etc. Please pray for me if you are the praying kind. I know that I should not “give up” on the rest of my time here, but sometimes I want to.

A somewhat updated list:

-Masked Weaver with nests hung oddly and amazingly from trees
-Pin-tailed Whydah (looong tail, very teeny bird)
-Two monitor lizards (One was closer to me, sprinting, and longer than I am tall)
-Purple-crested Lourie (Sounds like “Kok-kok-kok-kok” escalating in volume. There are two that live at least some of the time in a big fig tree in the yard. I’ve only seen one in flight very briefly, but it had AMAZING crimson parts on its wings.)
-Possibly a Blue Waxbill
-Cape Dwarf Chameleon
-Lots of insects including: Pyromorphid Grasshopper (Technicolor), Blister Beetle (which Does in fact give you a rash that itches like no other), and many different praying mantises.
-Egret
-Guinea Fowl
-Golden Leaf-Folding Frog (teeny)
-Baby Cobra (We did NOT get close enough to know what kind)
- And some other kind of small frog that ranges from yellow to brown and has maroon on its feet/around the edges. Apparently if cows eat them they get really sick.
-Some kind of adder
-Lilac Breasted Roller (Coracias caudata) This bird is very beautiful.
-Barn Owl (Tyto alba) I haven’t gotten a very good look at these. I mostly see them flying around at night and very eerily screeching.
-Rose’s Toadlet (I think?)

MANA POOLS:
Elephant (Loxodonta africana), hippo (Hippoptamus amphibious), impala (Aepyceros melampus melampus), waterbuck (Kobus ellepsiprymnus), kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros), Chacma baboon (Papio cynocephalus), vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops), Burchell’s zebra (Equs burchelli), warthog (Phacochoerus aethiopicus), buffalo (Syncerus caffer), spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta),Nile crocodile, wattled crane (Grus carunculata), Crested Guineafowl, Ground Hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri), fish eagle and other birds. Heard lion (Panthera leo).