Lesotho - Days of Heat & Dust

Endless Dry Summer

December 19, 9am, 90 degrees… Even the typically short southern Africa spring was eclipsed months ago by long, hot, dry days and now the summer season marches on relentlessly to the hottest months of January & February. October through April is typically Lesotho's rainy season, when 85% of the rainfall should occur in the less than 65 days per year when the sky is not sunny & clear. But, we learned through government warnings months ago that there would be no rain and we should all prepare for a long drought - at least through March.

Parched land equally distributed
I ask the elders, "Ntate, have you seen such drought"; they say, "Mme, never in my lifetime". I ask, "Ntate, where will you get water"; they answer, "Mme, there is water underground but we don't have enough wells, we must share what little we can find". I ask, "Ntate, what will you feed the precious cattle, cows, horses, and sheep"; they reply, "Mme, there is no grass, they will grow thin & some will die". I ask, "Ntate, what about the maize fields"; they say, "Mme, we cannot plant without rain". I ask, "Ntate, what will you do next year when there is no maize grain for papa"; they say, "Molimo oa ka we do not know, we must pray".  And so they look to the sky & pray.

It is painful to see the beautiful landscape of Lesotho now parched & crackling… the maize fields plowed & ready, yet there are no beautiful stalks pushing up higher each day & the peach trees actually wilting with their hard small unripe fruit when they were so full with juicy peaches this time last year. It is painful to see the livestock growing thinner & thinner, their ribs & hips rising sharply as their bellies & haunches shrink. It is painful to hear the neighbors' wheelbarrows rolling along dirt roads at all hours of night & day; filled with buckets, now empty now full, back & forth as they seek out a community well or creek that trickles water; waiting in long lines for their turn to scoop a cup or quart full of water into their containers. It is painful to see little kids catching & drinking small quantities of dirty runoff.  We have heard of deaths due to drinking contaminated water & many more cases of dehydration & diarrhea - the neighbors know they must now boil their water, though they did not do so before, but sometimes one is just too thirsty to wait.


Dust Storm
We even have some fierce dust storms. One evening St. Patrick's Church bell was ringing non-stop warning the community to prepare for a wind storm… the tin roofs are known to fly off so folks were warned to get ready. The air was so thick with dust that we couldn't see the usually brilliant night sky & in the morning the sky remained tinged red-brown for many hours.


Certainly all my California friends & family have experienced drought and this fourth year with below normal rain has been particularly severe. We have seen the reservoir levels shrink, the lawns turn brown, the farms, fields, livestock & crops suffer.  The farmers see the harshest effects all around them, those of us in the urban & suburban areas feel the impact but less intensely. We do our best to conserve with all the water saving technology we have implemented over the years. New California laws to manage farm & orchard water usage are discussed - we talk about ways to improve. But, we always seem to have the essential… clean water coming from the taps in our homes.

Lots of water but none to spare
Lesotho raises millions of dollars each year through the sale of water to the Republic of South Africa (RSA) through the Highlands Water Project, Africa's largest water transfer system. The project's water is currently unavailable to the Basotho though the nation does benefit from the hydroelectric power that is generated. Another project, the Metolong Dam is expected to be completed by 2020 but will primarily supply water to just the urban area around the nation's capital of Maseru. Most Basotho will continue to rely on ground water through creeks, rivers, and wells. Many rural residents, especially those in the mountains, walk long distances to retrieve their water supply. Meanwhile food & feed prices are rising…

PCV life
So - what is life for me, a "privileged" Peace Corps Volunteer. Yes, I am privileged because I am one of the minority PCVs who has indoor plumbing. Earlier in the year I had a sink installed in my makeshift kitchen and the hot water heater repaired. During the winter months after I returned (June-August) I enjoyed hot showers & the comforts of a "modern" kitchen. However, since September, the water flow is inconsistent & limited & I have to store water in buckets; collecting the water from the indoor tap when the water flows for a short while every week or two. The joy of having a flush toilet soured a bit since, without the back-up of an outhouse, I have to use a precious bucket full of water to flush (ok it is still worth having a flush toilet!!).  Peace Corps provided PCVs large barrels to store water, but we have to rely on our neighbors & organizations to fetch the water. If I run out of water I ask Sister Juliana to drive me to/from the children's home (just 1.5 miles away) with my buckets to fill from their well. I can shower at the children's home or at the hotel in the nearby district capital of Mohale's Hoek (1.5 miles away)…usually every other day with daily touch-ups/spit baths in my home.  Other PCVs are hauling water from taps near & far. We are all conserving every drop.  I did plant my vegetable garden in late October - silly me. Obviously without rain just a few squash & watermelon seeds pushed up hardy plants; for those I just dole out a cupful or two of gray water every other day to keep them going - at least something surviving brings hope.

My garden - a few hardy plants


The sad dry gardens surrounding my home & 
the few hardy squash & melons that are fighting to survive with gray water














Peace Corps delivering a barrel of water



Joy still to be found
Now looking back I can see what a lucky or blessed (reader's perspective) series of events occurred that brought us our new irrigated commercial farm! 

This past June when I returned to Lesotho & winter was bearing heavily down on us (we had shortages of nutritious food & formula, one child was hospitalized for malnutrition & others very underweight), Sister Juliana met with Mme Marengue, a manager at the Ministry of Agriculture & a long term friend of St. Camillus. Sr. Juliana was asking for a contribution of seeds for the spring planting. During their chat, Mme M suggested that Sister submit a grant for a greenhouse to the Ministry of Agriculture & any NGOs we could find. Mme M & Sister agreed that with a greenhouse, the farm could supply year-round vegetables for the children as winters are too harsh for most produce. Mme M referred Sister to Ntate Thabang, a successful, local farmer who has a very large greenhouse for a seedling business. Nte Thabang could surely advise Sr. Juliana on how to write a grant for a greenhouse.  The way I see the events now looking back is that though Rethabile & I did proceed to write a greenhouse grant (submitted to the Ministry of Ag & other NGOs but never funded) - Nte Thabang had a much grander vision. He had taken one look at the St. Camillus property and saw a world of potential! The Centre has water supplied by a borehole (a well that pumps water into tanks) & two large fields totaling over 4,400 square meters of fertile ground.  Field 1 had been used for maize (the dry corn harvested & milled for papa, the Basotho staple carbohydrate) while chard (sold for meager cash to local neighbors) had been planted on Field 2. Neither field was particularly productive nor contributed to the Centre's income. Nte Thabang suggested that with irrigation & planting commercially desirable crops (cabbage, green peppers, tomatoes, peas), the farm could become profitable. 

Sister Juliana was inspired - she has the soul of a saint but the genes of a farmer & business woman - and planning began. Nte Thabang was trained in Conservation Agriculture in Canada & would be our consultant, install the irrigation, & supply us with seedlings (a win-win for all).  I asked Nte to develop a 3 year plan for crop rotation, all expenses, & potential income. Meanwhile I had just completed a workshop for Peace Corps sanctioned grants and I had the information needed for Rethabile & I to write a grant that would be funded by PEPFAR (a US program: President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief).  We wrote the grant & got $3,750USD (plus used the Centre's own investment of $1,250USD) to irrigate Field 1 & plant cabbage seedlings.

So, long story cut short… here we are in the middle of a drought, local folks are not able to plant their maize fields nor their home vegetable gardens, and St. Camillus is selling "farm fresh vegetables".  Customers include markets from Mohale's Hoek & as far away as Maseru (2 hr drive), local street vendors, schools, & neighbors.  The Centre is helping the community by supplying Lesotho grown fresh produce (rather than importing from RSA) & providing guaranteed full-time work for current farm staff plus part-time work for the needy that Sister Juliana has under her wide wings (the destitute, people living with HIV/AIDS, the under-employed).

Follow the sign to St. Camillus


Basotho love the big cabbage!
The Centre is also making money!! Well we have not yet turned a profit & we are still in a risky position as new commercial farmers. Can we keep the  veggies pest free? Will there be enough customers? Are we able to hire enough staff to harvest? And on and on and so it goes.

More stable base for managing the business
I often tell Sister she has a very large & complex business to run: providing a home to orphans, managing a commercial farm, & providing charitable aid to people living with HIV/AIDS. It has now been a full year since we began taking baby steps to build a financial infrastructure to support this business… a year of trial & error, confronting cultural norms, moving away from guessing monthly expenses to setting up a budget, using tools (yay for Excel spreadsheets!), putting money in the bank rather than hiding  little bundles of cash in secret places! Bank deposits are being made for the first time as the Centre actually has an income! The goal is to reduce our heavy dependency on donations from The Lesotho Connection & NGOs, & though we are still a long way out, that goal is clearly in our sights.  


Rethabile managing farm sales

The real strength behind our business management achievements is Rethabile, she is my counter-part (partner, co-worker) who now runs the Centre's "business office". This marvelous 23 year old is so intelligent, wise, talented, & eager to learn. We have steadily moved forward so that she has assumed full accountability & I am available to her as a consultant as needed. These days I ask her to give me work & direction! 



And our darling children
Monthly Weighing Session
Six months ago we were struggling with food shortages & malnutrition. Our monthly weighing sessions are a delight now - the kids love the attention & the matrons are taking pride in their weight gain.  Comparing June to December weights - the infant to 5 year old group, has, on average, increased their weight by 21%. The two infants (one 7 months, the other 1 year) have caught up & have doubled by 6 months & almost tripled by 1 year their birth weights respectively. Progress is very slow & we still have children under five who fall below the "low normal" weight for their age while the remainder hover just above that marker. In June 67% of these children were below normal but December weights indicate that number has dropped to 56%.

Best kids ever!
Other December stories
More Grants
Rethabile & I submitted two new grants. We have already received the good news that one for approximately $1,400USD has been approved by 10,000 Gardens in Africa, a Slow Food-Italy program. This grant will fund next year's seedlings & tool. 

The second grant request was submitted to Peace Corps for another $3,750 & we are all optimistic it will be approved soon. It will be used toward drilling a second & deeper borehole (well), completing the irrigation system, &, we hope, partially funding a small greenhouse.

These grants will help us complete the work started in July-September with funds from Peace Corps & the GoFundMe effort led from the USA by very good friend Deanna Anderson.

Visitors
Ska Moteane is our local contact for the Slow Food-Italy program and she is a renown Lesotho chef who won the 2013 Gourmand World Cookbook award for best African cookbook for her book of Lesotho traditional recipes, Cuisine of the Mountain Kingdom. We invited her to come to St. Camillus to put on a cooking demonstration/workshop for our matrons & other invited guests. She came!!! 

She arrived on Dec 2 to visit the Centre, meet the children, & tour the garden.  She & her friend Ma-lord (who was involved in publishing her book & consults with small Lesotho businesses to improve their markets) spent the night at my home.  We had a full house for dinner & sleep over with Linda from TLC, PCV pal Tracy, & Rethabile. We had fabulous discussions over dinner & breakfasts. 



Ska was up at 4 am to start her slow food - slowly simmering the dish she would demo. Meat bones simmered for hours to create a rich broth in which sorghum grain, carrots & celery were added for more hours of simmering. She charmed a small group of wary matrons, a St. Camillus Board member, a local farmer, and us PCVs with stories of her past & how she became a chef. She so inspired the matrons that they cooked the same dish that same night for the kids.




Linda Henry also was here, mid-November to mid-December. She stayed at my house & spent most of her time with the children & managing the shopping while Sister Juliana took a much needed 10-day vacation (she spent the time resting knitting & praying in the quiet of a nearby convent.  Linda is well known & well loved by the St. Camillus children & most of the Mohale's Hoek community.  There seemed to be a steady stream of visitors, old & young, coming to visit her or greeting her in town. With donations from her family, she led the effort to help the older kids pick out their Christmas outfits & make sure all the kids had some wonderful clothes & toys for Christmas day. Linda was here last January - at the time that I had my fall - so she ended up spending much of that time managing the place on her own while Sister was on vacation.  She had a little easier visit this time as we buddied up to get things done when possible. Linda was instrumental during the design & build phase of the new orphanage in 2013 - she spent six months at the Centre finding & working with the contractor & Sister Juliana.


Pray for Rain!
A double rainbow frames St. Patrick's Church after one 30 minute rain!
Linda's Photo


Holiday get away
Tracy & spent the holidays in the little town of Clarens, RSA - just across the border a few hours away from Maseru. It is a lovely and quite civilized "artist's" town that is a great get away spot for local South Africans & tourists traveling  through the Free State of RSA. We hiked the nearby parks & Tracy coaxed me onto a river rafting day-trip.  We have a fabulous time - great countryside, wonderful hikes, & even great food!
Golden Gate Highlands




The Cathedral at Golden Gate - a precarious way up!

San Paintings 

A walk with a shaman to learn about medicinal plants



Tracy in front, I'm cowering in the back


Lesotho - Tragedy & Prosperity

Real Dangers of the Lesotho Road

As Peace Corps Volunteers we are limited to using public transportation in Lesotho. Peace Corps tells us that navigating the Lesotho roads is much too treacherous & dangerous for us; there are just too obstacles & uncertainties that put us at risk.  And so we travel in public taxi vans & cars, or some PCVs hitch in private vehicles.  The roads though are the same - whether we drive or not. Winding, 2-lane roads, speeding taxis & cars, poorly marked, herd boys & their sheep or cattle off the shoulder, kids walking to/from school, pot holes, unmarked speed bumps, rocks, donkeys carrying loads, bricks, dead animals; all everyday conditions we must ignore or else they will make  us crazed.

When Tragedy Strikes

Sr. Juliana & Ntate Mahase often make the trip to/from Mohale's Hoek to Mafetang or Maseru to bring home groceries, farm supplies, & animal feed. Sr. trusts Ntate; he is a slow, careful driver, confident yet respectful of the dangers of the road. They have travelled together for many such trips to meet the needs of Sr. Juliana & the Centre.

All can change in a moment
Towards the end of October….Totally without warning a young student, 17 years old, ran out from in front of the taxi van that has dropped him off on the highway in front of his village.  He does not look at the traffic, he does not suspect Ntate Mahase is just a second away. The poor young fellow was hit by the Toyota truck that Ntate was driving & in just a moment all lives are changed forever. The young man was mortally wounded.  Basotho stopped on the highway & the young man was whisked away to the hospital in Mafetang. He dies early the next morning. Sr. Juliana & Ntate Mahase are forever spiritually & emotionally wounded.

This tragedy sets off a long period of consoling the family, managing their own recovery, and facilitating the funeral efforts & legal proceedings that result. There was a rallying of support for both the boy's family  & for Sr. Juliana & Ntate Mahase. The Sisters of the Congregation of the Holy Cross & the Bishop stood by Sr. Juliana to buoy her. But Sr. Juliana had to take on the brunt of the interactions with the family & the legal system.  At the family's request she provided what the family requested for the burial service: all of costs for managing the boy's body & the funeral, the rental of the large public tent for the ceremony,  the purchase of all the food & supplies needed for the family to host the burial services (which typically includes providing food for the entire village & family who attend). She visited frequently over a number of weeks to console the family. She appeared numerous times in court for legal proceedings. From the moment the police arrived at the scene of the accident through all the legal meetings, the police ruled the boy's death an accident without culpability on the part of Sr. Juliana or Ntate Mahase.

Harvest Time… Cabbages for Sale

Juxtaposed to the tragedy was another unexpected event.  The hot weather at the start of the summer along with the abundant water from irrigation has caused the cabbages to grow so fast that now they are huge & ready for sale. We were not ready! Rethabile & I thought we had time to work with Sr. Juliana & Mme Maletuka to set prices, market the produce, & set up the tools we needed to manage the sales.  No matter, we had to just do it, Basotho style - as they just imagined it should be done, as it has always been done.

Ntate Thabang stepped up to help, he contacted a merchant in Maseru and the first sale of 180 huge luscious cabbage was made on a hot afternoon. Thabang, Maletuka, farm hands & the merchant all worked together to cut the cabbages & load up a small Toyota truck for the 2 hour drive back to Maseru.  The Centre's first sale has been made!!


Ntate Thabang, our Conservation Agriculture consultant with Mme Maletuka



Mme Maletuak managing receipt of first sales

Local indigent women earning a small salary & a lot dignity working on the farm


Linda Visits!

The beginning of the month started with the much anticipated arrival of Linda H from Ohio. Linda is the much loved friend of St. Camillus who helped Sr. Juliana through the design & building of the new children's home, who is frequent contact with Sr. to facilitate resolution of issues & to coordinate communications with The Lesotho Connection. Linda stayed for about 3 weeks - during which time Sr. Juliana left for her own retreat (vacation). Having Linda stay at the Peace Corps House was a treat. She is a great person, loving, friendly, devoted to the Sr. Juliana & the Centre. She is always a huge help to Sr. Julian - such that Sr. J can confidently leave for her retreat knowing that Linda can handle any issues at the Centre plus drive the truck wherever needed to transport the kids & shop. On her last day, she rented a jumping water playhouse that the kids were crazy for!! They exhausted themselves playing & then stuffed themselves on a wonderfully nutritious meal prepared by Sr. Juliana.  Linda said goodbye to the kids with promises to be back later in the year. 







Southern Africa - A Real Vacation

On the Road with Friends from Back Home

Finally! The vacation planned eight months earlier became a reality:
Thanks to the careful planning of Mike, Deanna, Carole, & Barry - Mary-Anna & I had only to show up & off we went for 22 incredible days.

Zimbabwe-Zambia: Victoria Falls
Mike, Deanna, Mary-Anna & met in Johannesburg, RSA on October 1 to begin the first leg of our trip. It was incredible to leave the simple life in Lesotho & be transported once again to all the comforts of civilization.  We flew to Victoria Falls the next day where we were met by Blessing, our driver/guide, who made sure we arrived safely & on schedule to all our destinations.  Lodging was tent camping at the border from where we could hear the roar of the falls, feel its cool mist, & then be shuttled over to visit the falls. We spent a nice long day walking the length of the falls, taking a long hot walk & taxi into Zambia for lunch, before a cool evening river cruise & incredible dinner of bush meat & traditional foods.





Botswana: Chobe Game Reserve, Elephant Sands, & Okavango Delta
We explored different habitats such as savannah, desert, and an inland delta along the drive - viewing wildlife from bush drives, a river cruise, dugout canoe, on-foot, & by plane. We drove from Victoria Falls in the north all the way down to the capital of Maun. Our first stop in Botswana was Chobe which was Mike & Deanna's first experience seeing African wildlife & it did not disappoint. From the comfort & safety of bush drives, guided walks, & a river boat we got to see the incredible animals, amphibians, and birds of Botswana.  After several days of tent camping for me & an upgrade to a room with en suite bathrooms for the rest of the gang, we drove on to Elephant Sands where our desert bungalows were built on high platforms at eye level with the elephants who "owned" the territory. Our final stop was the oasis of the Okavango Delta; green grasses, cool river, abundant bird life. We journeyed out into the delta on narrow dugout canoes to reach our wilderness campsite & bush walks. Mary-Anna found a wonderful treat & gave me the ultimate birthday gift of a fire-flies by the delta's edge which we celebrated with Mike & Deanna's gift - the best Tequila ever!


Elephant Sands

Okavango Delta




South Africa: Kruger Park
Another flight took us back to Johannesburg where we met up with Carole & Barry & jumped into rental cars for the drive toward Kruger. A quick stop overnight & by the next morning, after passing through beautiful farm land & orchards along the Drakensberg Mountains, we  arrived at the Crocodile Gate at the southern entrance to Kruger. Our park lodging, Lower Sabie, provided morning & late afternoon game drives to see all the wildlife in the bush & at the river's edge (and some pretty good food at Mugg & Bean).  After a few days we headed to Pretoriaskop at the western boundary where we completed the viewing of the Big Five by several sightings of a leopard.  From this camp we parted ways with Carole & Barry & original 4 began our drive southward toward Lesotho.

Deanna's photos 

Kudu by Deanna

Elephants walking home at dusk


Swaziland: Drive-thru
On a whim we decided to pass through Swaziland! What a treat - the Mountain Kingdom, unlike Lesotho, is more lush & forested. We visited a cultural center where we had a really interesting guided walk through a reproduction of a traditional village. Staying in a lovely lodge & having a delicious dinner made the short trip all the more worthwhile. The route to Lesotho passed through the Free State of South Africa & the gorgeous mountain area of Clarens near the Lesotho border where we stayed the night.


Lesotho: Mohale's Hoek & Semonkong
Our final destination was back home to Lesotho! Mike, Deanna, & Mary-Anna were good sports & so willing to experience Lesotho - so unlike our other destinations! First stop was a typical "plate" lunch in a shack-restaurant in Mafeteng; they said they enjoyed it! Then on to visit Tracy at her tiny home in the village of Ha Matahbo; a more traditional & typical PCV house in a simple village. No electricity, no running water, & certainly no space in Tracy's tiny one room house. Tracy was gracious & cheerful as always.  Final stop for the day was my home; the Peace Corps House on the grounds of St. Patrick's church in the village of Thoteng, just 2 km outside the Mohale's Hoek District Capital. We settled in just briefly so we could go off to see the kids, Sr. Juliana, & Rethabile at St. Camillus Centre.  The kids were their usual exuberant smiling laughing affectionate selves & entertained us all. It was especially wonderful for Deanna to see the little ones & the farm; she could see firsthand just how her fundraising efforts were making a difference.  The rest of the evening was spent at home, no water so we all got to experience that challenge!  The next morning - up & back to the Centre for a final visit with the kids & to meet Bishop Joale. The Bishop treated us to a nice long chat & then graced us with his blessing before we had to leave.


Mike, Deanna, Sr. Juliana, Bishop Joale Tlhomola


Our final stop was the mountain village of Semonkong & wonderfully comfortable & scenic Semonkong Lodge. Two short nights here but the best way to bring our 3-week vacation to a close. Beautiful surroundings, great food, comfortable rondavel suites.  Mike & Deanna took a horse trek while Mary-Anna & I descended the Maletsunyane Falls by abseil. Unlike this past January when Tracy & I easily made the descent, Mary-Anna & I had an incredibly challenging time. Though the day was clear & bright & warm - the wind picked up & shifted the waterfall's spray right on top of us.  It seemed at least half of the 670 foot descent we were pummeled by heavy spray! It was an exhausting experience but one we proudly survived!

We departed on October 22 for our final day together - the long mountain drive, max elevation over 9,000 feet, back towards Maseru. They would leave me at an intersection where I would travel by public taxi van back to Mohale's Hoek while they would make the long drive back to Johannesburg and catch their flight back to the USA the next day. The farewells were tender & we thanked each other for the wonderful 3-week trip we shared.



Road to Semonkong - Heart of Lesotho

Masotho Ntate
Abseil again!

Wind shifted and dropped the Maletsunyane Falls right on us

Exhausted!

Mary-Anna 


Hike up and out of the canyon