Gardening Season has begun!

There’s that classic math problem that goes something like “Sarah can wash a car in 5 minutes and Matt can wash a car in 8 minutes.  If they both work together to wash 3 cars, how long will it take?”  (That was a classic math situation, right?  Or should I be thinking about trains colliding or passing each other…or derailing, to add some Cameroonian flavor?)  (Also, sorry Matt Bikoff, but Sarah Edwards could totally wash a car 3 minutes faster than you.)

I like to think I used to be good at math, but I never really cared for that classic car-washing puzzle.  That’s probably why when I saw Tabitha working in the field next to my house, I didn’t put much thought into it other than “hmm…Tabitha could probably weed this field in two hours, while it would take me sixteen gazillion hours.  Looks like fun!"

It didn’t really look like fun.  I had come home from being out of the house for nearly eight hours straight (that’s a lot of time here in Peace Corps Land); I had missed my daily nap (or two), and had a searing headache.  And of course we all remember my horrible gardening failures from "Machetes, Hoes, and Gardening Woes" Parts 1, 2, and 3.  Nevertheless, when I saw my friend working I couldn’t help but say, “hold on just one minute!  Let me change my pants and then I’ll come help!"

Maybe it was the bilbil talking, (on my way home, I ran into my friend Tala and we “went out for drinks together” which really meant chugging bowls of millet beer before even having a chance to sit down, and then parting ways) but I like to think that it was the way my dad had always encouraged me when I helped him in the yard as a little kid: "a little help goes a long way, and even company is better than nothing!" (This was before I realized that I don’t like dirt or bugs or sun or sweat.  Clearly I’m in the right place!)

Anyways, I changed my pants, grabbed my hoe, and started clearing away the dead, dried-up weeds.  I may have learned my lesson “don’t drink and machete,” but no one ever said a little buzz won’t help with the weeding!

About a half-hour into the work (and I actually was weeding at about the same speed as Tabitha, which I like to think makes our math problem a wee bit simpler), Tabitha asked me if my hands were feeling sore.  She looked down at her own, and pointed at the blisters forming.  Even for her, because of dry season, she’s gone months without this kind of work. That’s when I remembered that my mom had mailed me gloves after my last gardening disaster!  (Multiple pairs, in a variety of pretty colors to suit all of your gardening moods, obviously.)  I ran back to my house and chose green for myself and pink for Tabitha (she loves all things red or reddish, much like my own Mama).  After that, we worked much more quickly and comfortably.

We finally called it quits for the night when the sun started getting too low.

I am beyond willing to admit that I don’t know much about farming, and I definitely have very little authority in advising local people on agricultural methods (other than being a resource, or a connection to resources).  I was quite thankful when our sector name changed from “Agroforestry” to “Agribusiness”, because quite frankly, that meant less actual agricultural knowledge would be necessary on my part.  That all being said, I am beyond excited to learn.  Tabitha promised me that she would make sure I’m there the day that she plants corn in our field (our field being the one that we cleared today), and I’m going to be darn proud when we finally feast on very own couscous de maïs several months from now.

In other news: it rained last night!  (Hence why we’re preparing our fields!)  It rained buckets and buckets, literally!  In about an hour, I was able to collect over 100 liters, and can now do laundry, wash some dishes, and even flush my toilet!  The only downside is that the power went out during the horrible wind storm that preceded the rain, and my guess is it wont be coming back on anytime soon.  Nevertheless, rainy season has begun, the grass is beginning to grow, and it's time to plant our crops!