Letsatsi le eme, There is a drought

The fields below my house bordering SA that were green, green, green this time last year

It has only been several days since I have returned to my village from traveling up and down and all around the world (at least this is what it feels like) when I decided to go for an evening “errand” with my ‘M’e. She wanted me to accompany her on a little walk to our neighbor’s house to deliver some chelete, money, for pantyhose her friend bought her in town. Once we arrived, ‘M’e Motabeng graciously greeted us, pulled out some chairs, and the three of us chatted (I contributed a liiiiiittle bit-I am saying that my Sesotho" got lost in my travels," but with time, I’ll bring it back!). Our conversation was bleak maybe even depressing. We discussed the hardships the drought here in Lesotho has already caused and what they expect this year to look like. Not good at all..It’s January now, it should have rained, fields should have been plowed and seeds should have been planted by the end of October of last year, but still, no rain. Meteorologists predict rain to come in March, but March is too close to winter to plant anything because it will just freeze in a couple months. The bo-me say with hopeful voices that maybe we can plant khoro and lierekisi , wheat and peas, when the rains finally do come. Empa re tla bona, but we shall see.

It’s difficult to be so joyous about what I got to do, see, experience over the holidays while schools were closed when my village is suffering. What is everyone going to eat when harvest time comes around and there is no yield? We don’t know…To capture some of this dryness, I decided to tour my village with Mosilisi, a small grade 7 villager who I have become quite close to this break, and take photos of ever-day-life in Ha Khoro. 

Back view of my ‘m’e’s house, my stone one in the middle, and our outside pink kitchen

My kitchen! So many buckets..gotta hoard that water

‘M’e fresh from the well with water on her head..a trick I have YET to master

If ya need more than bucket from the well these boys will fetch water for you with their donkeys

Despite these difficult times, I do want to share some photos of vaca with all y’all from home. Erika and I had such a great time in Namibia. We mobbed around the Northern half of the country in our lil rental car equip with lots of road munchies (our favorite being biltong, a Southern African version of our beef jerky-but much juicer!), saw things that intrigued us, camped at spots we found fitting, and just winged it.

Observing the mastery of giraffes reaching the water without bending their legs to drink

Zebras and wildebeests grazing 

Exploring the dunes in search of the perfect spot to watch the sunset in Sossusvlei, Namibia

Chillin with the trees in Dead Sossusvlei

After Namibia and another week spent in Lesotho together, Erika left and I had two days before I packed my bags again for another trip with four fellow Peace Corps friends. We road tripped it through the mountainous southern region of Lesotho and finally experienced the remotely magical national park of Sehlabathebe, camping all the way to Durban, South Africa. Here the five of us rented an apartment and soaked in first world amenities.

Above the clouds in Sehlabathebe made our hike a eerie in all the right ways

 One can see how this park inspired Tolkien to write his Lord of the Rings Trilogy-no joke!

Thousands of year old paintings from the San People

 Making “ganash” for dinner-AKA throw all the things thrown into one bowl and consume

Frolicking through the hills with my Gandalf staff

The not-so-very-beautiful beaches of Durban, SA

One of the perks of Durban..SUSHI!

Taylor, Julie, Jen, myself, and Lea feasting at Semonkong Lodge for Christmas dinner

Now I am left with just two more weeks until the schools open. Our form C students preformed exceptionally well for their COSC Junior Exams and Khoro High School is ranked second for best preforming high schools in our district. Villagers are elated about this, because honestly I think many may have doubted our new school; they were unsure of what us teachers were doing. But now they have peace in knowing the teachers are doing their jobs and the students are working hard to pass. We will carry this positive energy into the new school year. Until then we will sit on our stoops, trying to stay cool in this 100+ degree summer sun, and of course, wait patiently for the rains to come.

Girls got SKILLZ

Grassroots Soccer SKILLZ Girls 2015, "Blessed Sister"

 The sound of what I still associate with the scratchy dragging of garbage bins over sidewalk on “trash day” in America but in actually is the sledging of loaded metal carts powered by donkies headed to the well to get water-wakes me up. I think to myself: damn, its been over a year now since I arrived here and this sound still makes me think of trash day..Anywho, it is Sunday and the big anticipated graduation day for M’e Matlotliso’s and mine group of Grassroots Soccer SKILLZ girls to celebrate their two months of hard work. I decided to get my anxiety out some trails made by cattle, sheep, and goats through the deserted cornfields below my home, adjacent to the Caledon River. Feeling good and lifted after my run, I walk to Ntate Mohapo’s shop nice and early to purchase nama ea khoo khoo le pofo ea papa, meat of chicken and powder of maize meal. This is only place to get meat in Ha Khoro because they have a freezer and these girls deserve to feast of some meat after they worked so passionately about the “unspoken” things here in Lesotho-sexuality, gender norms, relationships, self worth. I got to assist these girls with gaining knowledge about their rites as young ladies, and thus I got watch them develop confidence and trust in themselves and with their peers in the group.

I arrive at the school at 8 AM when “study” begins, a time in which students are required to come to school for two hours either on Saturday or Sunday and review their notes form the week. (If they are to dodge study, they get the stick on Monday..) After study is over the girls preform their drama they have been practicing for weeks to those that wish to stay after study and watch. Me Matlotliso, some form C girls, and myself began to prepare the foods and another teacher set some speakers to make their be sound and play mino ho jaefa, music to dance. At any Basotho event, there must be music and everyone, everyone is invited to dance together. The weirder the mix the better-students, teachers, grandmas, toddlers, elected officials..no problem!

After study was finishes the girls line up in front of the school and nervously and act out their drama about two young village girls who go away to boarding school and one encounters pressures from her new peers. The girls rocked it. I feel like a overly-proud-soccer-mom. They award each other with certificates of SKILLZ completion, give one compliment about the awardee, and then gift them with a big hug in front of the school.  Together, we do our unique and final “Blessed Sisters” cheer and Limpho reads a poem, Beautiful Flower. Best verse I must share:

"I talk these words to every girl who thinks that she is not special because she does not look like a super model,

The next day the radio tells you to shake your money-maker,

Shake your head and tell them you are a leader!"

We continue the celebration by dancing to the ever-so-popular South African house music in a big circle. The male teachers are served their plates of food and us girls trot to the kitchen to nosh our papa and nama out of a big caldron pot, family style. The girls pick those bones cleeeeeean, leaving nothing behind. Happy bellies, happy girls, happy lives! Re khotse haholo, we satisfied completely.

Giving Kananelo her certificates

Chanting our final "Blessed Sisters" kilo!

Kananelo, Thotoane, and Mohapi posing with their certificates

This excitement and getting to do a science experiment with the biology kids really made the end of the school year fulfilling. Now, we are left with two weeks in which the students will write their exams and soon enough I will be zipping off to the big unknown land of Namibia with my SISTER. We plan to travel around in our rental car, probably get lost, make some friends who will help us, camp under the African moon, and just follow no plan at all. I am so elated to get to so this with no one else but my sister and best friend in life.

The hiking crew for our three day trek through Southern Lesotho

The beautiful Senqu River 

Cheesin with Ts'oani 

The lil' minions are posted