Relentless dust

The short rains are due and a dust with a consistency of smoke hangs in the air and covers everything in a thin film of brown. It hasn't rained since before we left 4 months ago, and despite the crops surviving due to the centuries old mfareji (irrigation ditches) the untended shrubbery has withered into the dust. The nights are cool, the days gradually heat as the ferocious sun slow cooks anything not safely in the shade, but a cooling afternoon breeze - laden with dust - blows through as the sun dips.

The 'home-coming' to Arusha and the village of Sinon was filled with mixed emotions. Bleary-eyed we staggered off the Ethiopian Air (rubbish airline) flight at Kilimanjaro airport and found that Heather's backpack had gone astray en route to Tanzania. It was a minor miracle that our other bags did arrive considering the amount of plane hopping required. Whether it went to another airport coded similar to JRO (Johannesburg, Jordan?) we don't know, but it has safely made it to Arusha now and Heather can change her trousers.

The Kesho Leo mamas were at Edmund Rice school doing sewing lessons, so we popped in there first. We knew they would be pleased to see us, but I wasn't sure if males and females hugging was culturally appropriate. But when the mamas rounded the corner where we were standing they almost knocked the wind out of me with crash tackling hugs and tears. And Heather, she was nearly trampled as the women virtually piled on top of her weeping and wailing and holding onto her. The greeting with the labourers was a little more subdued - just big smiles and lots of 'pole' (sorry) and hand shaking and some gentle hugs.

The developments at the Kesho Leo site have been incredible - the permaculture farm has come on leaps and bounds under the superstar guidance of the new volunteer, horticulturalist Eve. The building is also racing along as the Stratti brothers and Robbie work like men possessed to get is built by Christmas. Corky and Ben have also been doing an incredible job with the Volunteer Village renovations. Some of the labourers are now almost skilled tradesmen and the 'dollar for dollar' matched savings plan for capital purchases has already had some men buying cement to build better houses for their families. So despite some tensions that exist at times between FWS and the Stratti team everything is racing along and spirits are high. A pair of actors from the BBC came to the mama meeting yesterday to teach acting games to the kids and children.

Plenty to ramble about, but at the moment we are just preparing ourselves to get back into the routine of work and try to avoiding getting as malnourished as I recently realised we must have been - and to pray for the rains to come and dampen the intoxicating oppressive dust.