- Dear Family and Friends,
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- There is a natural swimming pool on a cold mountain river
in Zimbabwe's Eastern Highlands. At a spot where the Inyangombe River cavorts
over an outcrop of smooth, weathered, brown rocks, the river settles briefly
into a pool below the waterfalls. Sometime in the past, many decades ago,
river sand was brought in and deposited on the banks, creating a perfect
beach. The water in the pool is clear and cold, the river base covered
in smooth pebbles and when the wind blows in the branches of the overhanging
trees and whispers in the pine needles, you can't help but forget the absurdity
of current affairs in Zimbabwe.
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- When a friend got a hole in the exhaust pipe of his car
this week, a simple job turned into a marathon. A visit to a local garage,
line the vehicle up, drive onto the ramp and then wait while the car is
elevated a couple of metres off the ground and the repair is undertaken.
No problem you say? Ah, but only as long as the electricity stays on! Twenty
minutes into the job the electricity went off, the car was left stranded
2 metres off the ground. Closing time approached and my friend got anxious.
"What about my car," he asked?
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- "Nothing to do" the mechanic replied, "I've
got no way of getting it down. It'll have to stay there till tomorrow."
"Haven't you got a generator?" my friend asked, his wallet, ID
and house keys were all locked inside the car which was hanging over his
head. The generator wasn't powerful enough to run the elevator ramp and
so the workshop was closed up till the next morning.
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- Long before opening time my friend was back at the garage.
The electricity had come on overnight when no one was around but had gone
off again at 5 in the morning.
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- Close your eyes, can you hear the wind in the pine trees
above the Inyangombe River, I thought to myself as I heard the story. 8
o'clock came, 9, 10 and then finally at 11 in the morning the electricity
flickered back into life. A simple 15 minute job had taken 19 hours and
the loss of business incurred by my friend and the garage owner another
incalculable drain on our stone broke, impoverished country.
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- Every day brings to light another absurdity in Zimbabwe,
never more so than now as talk of elections gains momentum. I could hardly
believe news reports that a convicted rapist, the leader of an Apostolic
Church, has just been released from prison 13 years early because he's
got high blood pressure. My own blood pressure soared at the news, particularly
because this church man has long been an outspoken supporter and campaigner
for Zanu PF. "High blood pressure!" still the words echo in my
head as I close my eyes for a moment and listen for the hiss of the Inyangombe
River tumbling over the rocks.
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- Then came the staggering news from the Zimbabwe Election
Support Network who have been conducting research into the state of Zimbabwe's
voters role. One of their findings is that a third of the registered names
on the voters roll are of dead people. They also say that 2,344 names belong
to people aged between 100 and 110 and that 9 names are of people apparently
aged between 111 and 130 years. This in a country where life expectancy
is less than 40 years, leaves us all in no doubt that without a new voters
roll, change is certainly not coming to Zimbabwe anytime soon. Are you
listening Mr Zuma, SADC and the AU?
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- Oh to sit on the beach alongside a clear, cool mountainous
pool!
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- Until next time, thanks for reading,
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- love cathy.
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- Copyright Cathy Buckle 22nd January 2011. www.cathybuckle.com
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- For information on my new book "Imire", about
Norman Travers and Imire Game Park, or my other books about Zimbabwe: "Innocent
Victims," African Tears," "Beyond Tears;" and "
History of the Mukuvisi Woodlands 1910-2010", or to subscribe/unsubscribe
to this letter, please visit my website or contact cbuckle@zol.co.zw
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