It is a wonderful feeling when someone says “Oh, you are from Zimbabwe? What a beautiful country! I was there a little while ago and…” It takes me right back to the flamboyant trees and dark red mud. For some slight narcissistic reason, I feel instantly connected to this person just because they’ve also had an experience with “my” country.
Zimbabwe is an interesting place. It’s roughly the same size as Montana – so it isn’t tiny – but it also isn’t massive. What is fascinating is how it is has so many different faces: forests and mountains; lakes and deserts; skyscrapers and mud huts. I’ve traveled quite a bit and I haven’t found a place this size, with so much diversity, apart from Cape Town.
With only +/- 12 million people there today, Zimbabwe also isn’t densely populated, although when I was a child, there was no more than 9 million. It was only 1% white, so I really was a minority if we base that on color. Today, I live in America and even though I’m now considered in the ‘majority,’ it still feels out of place.
The minute I cross Valencia street in San Francisco, or Mott and Prince St in New York, I feel more comfortable immediately. I find a warmth in color and cultures.
Zimbabwe was once called the “Switzerland” of Africa, a veritable “jewel.” However, the country has had dreadful problems over the past twenty years, and particularly over the last twelve. Inflation has been one of the worst the world over and nationally morals have plummeted.
If you wish to learn daily news please visit http://www.zimbabwesituation.com/
My first visit after ten years was this past December, we landed in Victoria Falls on Christmas Day, (and what a present that was!) Rushes of familiarity and excitement took over as we flew over the country nosing our way down to a dinky landing strip. I was suddenly a child again… mesmerized. The sky greeted us at our feet and we walked into a rather small, chaotic airport where someone was attempting to make us stay in lines of no discernible order. The passport controller’s pen ran out of ink and the other controller’s stamp utterly broke. We all waited…Happily. Peacefully. We were back on Zimbabwean time.
Even after flying for 19 hours, I didn’t mind waiting nearly as much as I thought I would. Here I was, used to New York time (which is an oxymoron as there is no time in New York) but… I didn’t mind.
I stared outside hungrily as the hotel car drove us to the lodge. The trees… Oh the trees! Amazing acacias, arms out wide offering shade to street market sellers and the odd wild warthog or sheep. Ironically, the roads still looked in perfect shape — strips of tarmac running perfectly across the country side — no litter to be seen. I was happily shocked.
As a child my very best friend in the world was my bicycle. I had it stripped down completely so I couldn’t hear a clank of mudguard or chair or bell – it was literally a chrome frame on well pumped up worn tires. I would fly over strips of burnt colored mud… hard as concrete. Through ditches and up rocks. My bicycle took me to stables and compounds where smells of family and nature contentedly mingled. Dogs barked at a lost cow who was wandering through someones massive garden. Latest models of cars drove together with ancient relics of vehicles. Old and new. City and Country. Sky and Earth. Even then I knew how lucky I was to be brought up in a space which allowed for such freedom and primal awareness.
Anyway… this isn’t about me… it’s about Zimbabwe. I wish for it to be all it deserves to be: a land of natural opportunity; a land of laughter and generosity; a land willing to share all it has to people who wish to learn and grow. Please consider visiting it or learning more. It needs attention. It needs gratitude. It needs you.
Thank you Zimbabwe for all you’ve given me.
-Be well. Tatenda
-c
Born and bred in Zimbabwe, left only for 5 years for education in the U.K and returned back soon after independence. I am not sure how I spent 5 years in the U.K. Every time someone stepped on my toe, I just felt like apologizing, that is how unsecure I was and that is the time I realized what Zimbabwe meant to me. When I came back as I got out of the plane, I just found myself kneeling on my knees head slowly going to kiss the ground. Oh boy how I love this country and its very humble people. That was 30 years ago and I promised myself that one day I would start a for no profit organization to give back to Zimbabwe the humanity that I got from it. I am pleased to announce I have started an organization called Rava Zimbabwe Rava, in English it means Read Zimbabwe Read, why, we are what we read as much as we are what we eat. I have discovered over time, the hate and intolerance that we experience not only in Zimbabwe but across the globe is due to ignorance, lack of information due to lack of reading. Biblically we perish for lack of knowledge, do we not? Rava is going to have a two pronged approach to banish ignorance, Firstly advocacy for our beautiful people to take up reading, you know Zimbabweans read for academia, what I call reading for desperation, they read to pass that exam and get a qualification once done, certificate hung on the wall books packed in boxes. I want Zimbabwean to read for pleasure; Reading is to mind what exercise is to the body. Imagine reading for an hour a day will translate to into about one book per week. One book per week will translate into 50 books per year. Imagine the impact it would have on our beautiful Zimbabwe if on average each of us read 50 books per year. The average adult I guess will read only one book per year. The second approach is to populate Zimbabwe with books, but we are cognizant that the books that are read are important, so Rava Zimbabwe Rava promotes reading, inspirational, motivational, self-improvement, spiritual and auto
And biography and of course academic books. We are therefore working with organization overseas to resource our country with books. We have also found that mindsets are changed even by listening to audio programs while in cars, public transport as the populace move from place to place. We want to turn cars and public passenger into learning machines or life university on wheels. Times a changing we also have found the youth of today is captivated by the e-gadgets, so why not give him e-book readers even go further negotiate with authors who have written text books to authorize digitization of the books and our kids no longer carry satchel of books but Kindle Fires that has all their school book paraphernalia on them. Easy to read even on public transport and cars. Power black outs Kindle Fires ON.
So you folks out there what is your role, whenever you jet out of the country please on your way back go into that duty free book shop buy us a book on the lines suggested above, we will soon put “Rava Zimbabwe Rava Book Receiving Booths” (RZRBRB) on all our airports throughout the country. Lets continue to improve OUR ZIMBABWE.
Alfred Munonyara
Founder Servant
Rava Zimbabwe Rava
I’m Clare’s father. I was just following her blog about Zimbabwe and her childhood stories. Its poignant memories, and friendly replies, moved me to respond.
Environment Africa (http://www.environmentafrica.org) is an incredible organization. I have seen the positive results of their work, especially in the rural areas, where communities rely on their educational and all encompassing social support.
A factor that really impresses me is that they have very few expensive international advisors. Most of their productive work is managed and undertaken by Zimbabweans for Zimbabweans, under the competent and experienced leadership of Charlene Hewat.
If you are feeling that you need to meaningfully contribute to African society and are not certain how or where, then visit the Environment Africa website and be convinced.
I left Zimbabwe as a 10 year old in 1980 and hated every minute of my first few years in South Africa. By the time I went back for the first time in 1991 I was sure I had no emotional connection to the country.
But I was wrong. We drove up (a bunch of guys) to go canoeing on the Zambezi from Kariba to Chirundu. We arrived at the border on the South African side in the dark at 4am and waited for the border post to open. When the sun came up I was very unexpectedly overcome with emotion. I could see the hills of my native land across the border and I felt overwhelmed.
We then had a magical canoe trip down the river and some tiger fishing on Kariba. What a time we had! I loved every minute.
One of the interesting things is that I too was far less concerned about the border wait, or any issues, that I thought I would be. I just loved being there.
I’ve only been back once more, in 1995 for a two-week holiday in Harare. Enjoyed that trip thoroughly as well. My next trip will be with my wife and children sometime in the next year or two. Its going to be fun to show them where I grew up, not to mention seeing it again myself.
Thanks for the article and triggering my memories again.
Regards
Richard
Dear Richard, Mhoro
Thank you so much for your letter. I am so happy to hear you’ll be returning. The Victoria Falls Safari Lodge, is absolutely magical for a family. Really is. The entire staff and GM are fantastic. The Hide in Hwange is also incredible. If you wish to do any community service, http://www.environmentafrica.org is the real deal. My father was a co-founder over 20 years ago and I sit on their US board and my brother is on their UK board. They get ‘stuff done, ‘ and help children from all over the world understand how they too can help.
I hope you’ll return to this post and let us know how it was. Be well, Chisori – c
I hope to one day visit Africa! My cousin actually went to Tanzania last year to climb Mt.Kilimanjaro. I saw his pictures from a safari and they were absolutely BREATHTAKING! And after hearing your Zimbabwe stories, I will definitely plan a trip… hope my boss will give me time off
Love these posts!!
Dear Lisa
Thank you. In a few weeks, I shall once again be on the boarder of Tanzania and Kenya. I am ridiculously excited as it is the migration and we are also doing a small film in the slums of Kenya. Should be incredible. And yes…you must go! I’ll talk to your boss x – c