First light in the village Tshapasha

....After a 6 hour drive north from Johannesburg we arrived in Thohoyandou. Home of the University of Venda, the partner school to UVa. On the drive I saw what looked lions out in the distance, but might have been termite mounds. We took a route that led us across the tropic of Capricorn and over a pass into a valley that was less arid than where we started the trip. On the north side of the pass we saw about 25 Vervet monkeys with intelligent black faces and grey bodies feasting on what might have been the left-overs of one of the many roadside fruit stands along the way. On a smaller road coming into town, we saw more of what has been described in guidebooks as the “real Africa”, which I guess means rural and with limited resources. Goats in the road, red dirt, heavy pedestrian traffic, and the beauty of the people and surrounding area conjured up images of National Geographic photos. Upon arrival we met our project coordinator and were taken to a guest house of the university. Situated on a mountaintop in an area called Sibasa, we overlook the neighboring valley to the east. Now mornings start with the warm glow of the sunrise in my bedroom window.

It will never be possible to fully recount my experiences in this place. Perhaps the most difficult to relate will be in regards to the people we work with and the interactions we have. I’ll try anyway. Today we met the participants in our project in Tshapasha, the village where we will be conducting our work. The first was an elderly patriarch who was also an artisan. He began by showing us the carved wooden walking canes he had been working on, one of which he used. He was rightfully proud of these as well as some musical instruments he made. He showed us around his property, a one-room house containing three generations of his family, an interesting stone seating area, and a small shop. After about 10 minutes had passed, so that we would never forget him, he gave us two small whistles made from the dried fruit of an Aramba tree. First he played us a melody to show us how good we might eventually be. We thanked him, and as we left we tried to squeeze some notes out with partial success and much laughter. The generosity of this individual combined with a lot of exhaling through the whistles invoked a surreal and euphoric feeling as we walked back to the tree at the foot of the hill that served as the community gathering place.
Our assignment this day was to collect the cameras that had been dispensed and set up interviews with each of the 32 participants in our study. It was a tall order but with 6 people we tracked them all down and managed to complete the work in a very relaxed fashion. We were treated to a ceremonial dance at the end of the day by a group that was practicing nearby. On the way home we listened to a station that played American hit songs from the last 4 decades. Though the passengers in our car were from opposite sides of the world, we all found ourselves singing along to the reggae version of “Have you ever seen the Rain” by CCR. My spine tingled and produced a tear....

Yesterday, and days before,

sun is cold and rain is hard.

I know, been that way for all my time.'

Til forever on it goes

through the circle fast and slow,

I know, and it can't stop, I wonder.
I want to know,

have you ever seen the rain?

I want to know,

have you ever seen the rain

comin' down on a sunny day?- John C. Fogerty