The Sublime Passage

After spending some time in Zimbabwe, I’ve been getting a serious lesson in economics – Zim-style. It requires a bit of mind-bending and makes the economics classes I took (and hated) in college  seem easy.

Lesson one was delivered when my sister picked me up at Harare international airport and she  paid for parking with a $200, 000, 000 bill! Yikes. In case you’re wondering that’s the equivalent of about US$0.5.  Keep in mind that the exchange rate changes daily.

Today my Mom and I went to buy some fruit at a fruit & veg store in Bulawayo. 4 mangoes cost ZW$2 billion and half a watermelon cost ZW$ 3 billion.  We didn’t have that much Zim currency in cash so we used  South African rand.  We paid 33 rand, which at current exchange rates is roughly US$3.  See what I mean about mind-bending? Read more

I know that some of you have been wondering if and when I would blog during my trip.Well here I am. I meant to post something earlier but….I guess I’ve been acclimating.

I’ve been in Johannesburg for a week now. Its been so wonderful seeing my brother, sister-in-law and the itsy-bitsy nephews, who are too sweet for words. My 4 year old nephew is a chatty wonder. The last time I saw him he wasn’t speaking, so I’m still a little stunned by the fact that he and I now have the most wonderful conversations. He and his 5 year old cousin are full of profundities. I am very popular with them due to my high novelty factor. The other day my sister-in-law and I ran out for a while without the two of them noticing. When we returned we were told that “It’s not nice to leave children. Mommys can go, but Aunties have to stay with children”. Needless to say I felt very chastened.

The little bitty baby is the sweetest little thing. When he first saw me he just stared and stared at me. He has a habit of wringing his little hands together when he is feeling shy or when he’s thinking and as he stared he wrung and wrung his hands. Heartbreakingly sweet. He is very affectionate and will often just walk up to you and lay his little head against you.

I haven’t made to Zimbabwe yet. As it turns out there are a lot of people traveling there right now and I haven’t been able to get on a flight. I guess its not surprising given how many Zimbabweans live in South Africa. I confess to feeling overwhelmed by going home. When I couldn’t get on a flight I thought about taking a bus – but I’ve been warned that crossing the border into Zimbabwe is a nightmarish experience. Particularly now when lots of people are traveling home for the holidays and bringing food and other supplies to their families. I’m told that it is possible to spend an entire day waiting in line to go through immigration.

It seems that food and other household supplies are practically impossible to find in Zim. If they can be found they need to be paid for in foreign currency. Most people buy their groceries in South Africa and Botswana. Imagine having to go to another country to buy your groceries every month? Services which deliver groceries to Zim are big business. Big brother and I went shopping yesterday. We went to Makro – a store similar to Costco or Sams Club – and we bought groceries to send to our parents. We got everything from peanut butter to toilet paper to toothpaste. Someone picked it up and it will be delivered to them in a few days.

Nothing is simple there. I feel a little ashamed being overwhelmed like this when it is a reality of life for so many people. I’ve been here a week, haven’t even gone to Zimbabwe and I feel stressed? I feel like I have “survivors guilt”. It almost feels wrong to enjoy myself. It’s so surreal because here in South Africa, just across the border, it’s a different world – where there are supermarkets filled with products that can be bought with local currency and where there are petrol (gas) stations that pump gas. Everything here is so “normal”.

I’m working on not letting it all get to me. My parents, my sister and her family deal with these realities every day. Not to mention the millions of other Zimbabweans who aren’t able to go grocery shopping in South Africa. The people who are barely surviving. The people who don’t have access to clean water. Anything I would get upset about seems obscenely insignificant. I feel like I really don’t have a right to stress. I am reminded of the words of a wise friend who often says, “Its not always about you”. I need to keep it together because I really have no business falling apart. It is just the worst feeling in the world to be faced with a situation which is so awful, and so beyond your control. Every spiritual principal that I can think of seems flimsy compared with the harsh and tangible realities facing Zimbabwe right now.

Anyway, I will stop here. I need to pack my bags in preparation for my departure tomorrow. I will post again from Zimbabwe – electricity and internet connections allowing. Till then!