I am not a farmer

Rain means planting time. Nowadays I wake not only to the sound of roosters crowing but also the sound of whips cracking on the backs of oxen. Not a fun time to be a beast of burden in Zambia. Though I suppose, by definition, beasts of burden don't have fun times...

I was talking to someone about farming in America and how not everyone was a farmer so the people who did farm had big farms. He asked if they all had their own Oxen and I said they all had their own tractors. Then the man fell over from shock.

Everyone is asking me if I will, or telling me I should, plant a field of maize. I am a little worried about the social ramifications if I don't. Of course if I try to plant maize and fail I may loose what little credibility I have as a capable person. And golly that seems like a lot of work.

No, no Zambians. Ndatatilwa ne ntame bulimi. ( I am busy and I am not a farmer)

Both true but unfortunately not very valid excuses since EVERYONE grows maize. Even if you do something else to earn money you grow a field of maize to feed your family nshima.

So Saturday I ploughed my "field." I use "field" to refer to the small plot of land...actually "plot" is misleading also...what is something slightly larger than a flower pot? Let us use "patch." I ploughed several patches of soil to plant my kasmall galardeni (small garden).

Ruthie Zulu: Mwapunduku?
Keli: Cheena, ito amwe?
RZ: Cheena. Blah blah blah you are farming? (in Soli)
K: Yes I am farming (in English)
RZ: What will you plant? (in Enlish)
K: Here? Pumpkins...and flowers.
Rz: Flowers?
K: Yes. flowers.

Ntame bulimi.

Here is how you know: My patches of soil are hodge podge because I didn't want to disturb the lush green grass growing. I only ploughed the ugly soil. Sunday morning Mrs. Zulu sent their youngest girl Di over to help me plant. They often think I don't know what I am doing. They are often right. I give them very little reason to believe otherwise.

So Di and I planted okra, cucumber, eggplant, carrots, green peppers, peas, some kind of bean, organic beets courtesy of Sophia Walker, pumpkins, and flowers. I didn't plant maize because when you are farming in patches it seems a little ridiculous (Oh really Keli, you grew 10 ears of corn? How very industrious of you.) AND if I want fresh maize I can just go to the Zulus field and pick some. They are good farmers.

I hope things grow.

Someone passing Sunday afternoon told me I should plant some maize. I pointed to my freshly tossed soil rows and said I'd planted a garden. "Yes but you should plant some maize"

And yesterday morning, waiting for the truck to take me to Chongwe,

An entire gang of village men: Keli, are you going to plant some maize? Where are you going? You should be here ploughing your field. You are very lazy.
Keli: It is true.