Zimbabwe Absurdity

We had some good rain (at last) on Wednesday night. Thursday morning I was driving around the industrial sites having taken the expensive pump back for some minor alterations (see previous post) and couldn’t help but notice the frenzy of planting activity on every available piece of land. By the roadside, vacant plots, anywhere that could possibly be cultivated was being cultivated. In some places sweet potatoes had already been planted but most were being prepared for maize. It happens at this time of year every year. Plots are carefully tended but seldom is fertilizer applied and yields are meagre, in no small part due to passers-by who help themselves. The grand irony is that the money and effort spent on this exercise would be better applied to just buying maize meal (mealie meal) out the shop. It is much cheaper.

B (not his real initial) came past the nursery yesterday morning. I don’t see him often. He is not a young man anymore and is quite a lot older than me but we have farming in common and he always has time for a chat. For many years he was farming in the Nyanga area of Zimbabwe growing apples, which being a long term crop, requires years of dedication. I knew that they’d lost a substantial part of their farm some time ago but didn’t know that they’d finally been kicked off in February.

“They arrived with a letter signed by Mutasa himself” B commented. “And what with the half dozen AKs that came along too we decided it was time to go”. It must have been soul destroying to have to abandon most of your life’s work. “But my cook, who seems to be the font of all knowledge”, he added with a chuckle, “tells me that they are stumping out the apple trees to plant maize” and he looked decidedly downcast. Then he brightened up and asked me “But how’s the rain been? You see we have been away for a couple of months…” and we were back on familiar, comforting territory.