Journal 14
Greetings from Zimbabwe,
I ran out of space on my last journal and so I am beginning with some things that I had to leave out. The foundation is at ground level and by tomorrow the workmen should begin the back filling. That will be time consuming since all the back-fill has to be compacted. Then it will be time to pour the subfloor. Albert has estimated that it will take most of a month to complete that job. When the walls begin to go up it will be possible to see progress each day. Some may be wondering if it was ever going to get to ground level, I know I was becoming a bit impatient. I must say that the workmanship is of good quality and that really counts.
Friday, Beauty and I took salad to the kitchen at Guzha. The children were very skeptical of the greens, especially the pre-schoolers. Only one or two of the children actually ate the salad. I am sure they had never had salad before. Most of the children looked as though they had never ever had enough to eat.
I noticed that nearly all of the older children ate everything on their plates including the salad. It has been an interesting learning experience. Beauty feels we should continue to periodically introduce a variety of different foods. There are several rows of broccoli in the garden. It won’t be long before it is ready to harvest.
Interior painting is happening at the Moringa building. The metal window frames have had the first coat on both the inside and the outside. The painters are using a high gloss mold resistant enamel paint. The temperature has moderated and it is a bit warmer and sunny today. So it is a nice day for painting.
A covered veranda is being constructed at the door leading from the grinding room. This will enable loading of product when it is raining. There are going to be a few months during the cooler months when there will be little or no production.
Today is mild and sunny. There is a slight breeze but not the gale force winds that we had experienced. Workers have been in the Moringa fields watering and pruning the Moringa. There is a lot of maintenance after the cold that we have experienced. We have had no moisture and so watering is necessary. I am really nervous that there is going to be insufficient product for processing during training. One big step is that I have hired a process manager.
The young man in the picture is Albert a young orphan we found three years ago. He is the only surviving member of his family. He works at the poultry and is a totally changed person. He seems happy and always has a smile. This was not always the case when we first found him.
These chicks are about one week old. This is an experimental batch. It is being fed a special poultry mix that includes 5% Moring powder. Because of the Moringa we do not have to give them medications in their food. We will be interested to see how quickly they gain weight.
This batch may not give us totally accurate data since this group has not had lights 24/7. We will be doing additional test groups to verify the findings.
At the moment we are having difficulty keeping dressed chickens at the butchery. HCOC chickens are in high demand. Plans are underway to open a second butchery. HCOC has also been selling garden produce at the butchery as well as dressed chickens. The vegetables are in high demand, especially the Spinach. Our lettuce is finished and the carrots are getting very large. Thank goodness there is another planting almost ready for harvest.
Lumber has been delivered for constructing the bee hives. I am not certain when the construction will take place. It possibly will not happen until next week. The poultry workers are not happy. They just informed us that bees love Moringa powder and they fear for the baby chicks that are being fed a mash that contains 5% Moringa Powder. We may have a problem at the processing building when we are grinding the Moringa into powder. This will be an interesting challenge.
These women are cutting thatching grass that grows profusely in some areas on our site. They come and cut it to be used in composting. Their pay is vegetables from the garden. These are women who are living in desperate situations. Anything like this is a help to them. Sometimes they come with a baby tied to their back. I have some concerns about that. I am afraid of something happening to the children. Last week two very small children were left at the gate alone while the women worked. The watchman had to keep an eye on them. I don’t think they should be responsible for children so small.
Friday, I am flying to SA to visit some longtime friends. I need a break and some rest before I begin the training program. I am planning to return on August 3. I am told that the weather has been really cold there. I hope it warms up a bit. Today has been much warmer and I can tolerate this type of weather. The sun is bright and only a slight breeze. Most days the wind blows very strong. If the house weren’t of brick, I think it would blow us away.
I probably will not send a journal next week. So in two weeks, I will try to catch you up on what is happening here. In His Service, Roberta
In His Service, Roberta