Sweeping up the sunset

I start every morning here with a walk.  Well, that is after I’ve sat down to breakfast with Matt and nursed a delicious cup of his coffee while reading my “stories” on the internet.  In fact, Prithvi decides when it is time to go – I can only ignore her cries and tail wags for so long.

The mornings are still cool enough that I need to wear a light sweater but I can feel it heating up a bit each day as we make our way into summer.  We head out the gate with a goodbye to the guard and reassure him that we will be back soon.  Our neighborhood streets aren’t too busy that I mind the lack of sidewalk.  We take our walk early enough that most people are still on their way to work; I am beginning to recognize people who live and work in our little residential area.  People are so friendly here that nearly everyone I pass wants to say hello.  Usually, I initiate the greeting because I get a kick out of how peoples’ faces light up when I say “good morning”.  It is such a small thing but it seems to make a huge difference to the Zambians I meet.  Most people in turn ask me how I am and the more outgoing ones inquire after the dog.  One guy even asked me this week if he could have her.  I told him that he probably didn’t want this dog.

Even after almost two months of daily walks I am still amazed at the beauty of this place.  I get lost in my head as I pass the house with the plants that look like they belong in Jurassic Park and that avocado tree that is just about ready to drop at least 300 pieces of fruit. I marvel at the little sparrow-looking birds with their electric blue bellies.   I ponder how each home’s boreholes and the miniature water towers work.  I get the song “Shipoopi” from “The Music Man” stuck in my head every time I turn onto the street whose name sounds exactly the same.  I laugh at Prithvi when she raises her hackles and snorts at the same collie and Boerhounds she passes every morning.  I wave to the gardeners wearing their bright IKB-colored coveralls.  I watch each step when I have to walk up against a garden wall as I continue onto the busy road that completes my loop. 

Most walks are just like that.  However, yesterday I saw something that made me stop in my tracks.  I was astounded to see a gardener sweeping up all of the gorgeous purple petals from a Jacaranda tree.  How could he be getting rid of that incredible lavender carpet that was covering the ugly, pot-holed road?  I wanted him to desist immediately!  It seemed as ludicrous as someone sweeping up the sunset.  Luckily, before I made a fool out of myself I realized there was probably a perfectly valid reason for him to do such a thing – like cars needing to drive on the road without the hazard of slippery flower petals. 

I love my walks each morning and cannot wait to see what the new season brings.  Perhaps I will discover something even better than a purple petal-covered road.