Lost or Found?

While many people spend Sundays “finding themselves”, I have spent the last two getting massively lost.
On the whole, I had a lovely weekend. Yesterday morning, I went into Harare and had a relatively productive (keyword: relatively) shopping spree. Last night I was invited over to the neighbors’ house for pizza and cards. They are a young married couple named Lance and Cat and I’m sure we will be buddies while I live here. They are quite a few years younger than me, rather religious, and they sleep at 9pm, but they are the only young people around so who am I to be choosy? Plus, I had fun! They were very welcoming, friendly, and chatty, and we had a nice time playing canasta.
This morning, I went horseback riding with Helene and her children. Helene’s husband Chris is the general manager of the farm and they are a really nice couple. Even though they are in their fourties, I’ve already hung out with them four times and I’ve felt really comfortable and had fun. They have three kids, Ella (10), Thomas (7), and Jimmy (2). The whole family is really nice. This morning, Helene, Ella, Thomas, and I went horseback riding through the farm for almost two hours. It was a beautiful way to see the farm. I didn’t snap any photos because I’m not quite comfortable one-handing it on a horse yet, but soon!
“So, where’s the getting lost bit?” you may ask. Well, as I was leaving Helene’s, she and her husband told me about a shortcut to take me back to my home much more quickly. I was feeling comfortable and brave so I tried to take it. In case you haven’t yet gathered this fact, navigation and driving directions aren’t as straightforward here as in a city. No street names or shops as landmarks; instead, it’s rocks, trees, and crossroads. And boy, there are A LOT of rocks, trees, and crossroads.
Anyway, I got lost. No big deal, at least it was day this time, right? WRONG. On my path, I encountered a pipe that was crossing the road. I thought to myself that surely this Toyota 4X4 Offroad truck could handle going over a little water pipe. WRONG AGAIN. One wheel made it over, and then my car abruptly halted. I put the car into first gear and tried to get over it. Nope. I tried reversing it. Nope. I did, however, manage to wedge myself between the pipe and a set of boulders, and then my wheel locked. Lovely. No working cell phone. No numbers to call anyway. I got out, tried pushing the car, already knowing THAT wasn’t going to work. So I began to walk. Surely I’d run into SOMEBODY.
I did. But he didn’t speak English, nor did he drive. He kinda just stood there, looking baffled, like me. Then, thankfully, another man came. This one meant business. He said he’d get some people and be back. Fifteen minutes later, he brought two young lads. We all looked at the truck, puzzled. I suggested that I put it into neutral and they push. That didn’t work (I was wedged in, remember?). So, we spent the next 30 minutes hammering at the pipe with rocks and branches, trying to dislodge the pipes so we could pull them from under the car. I was thinking to myself that this was idiotic – it was never going to work, this metal was FIRMLY in place. And anyway, gallons of water were rushing through the pipes.
Finally, a pipe exploded. Water gushed out. Then, the rest of the pipes were easy to dislodge, so within minutes, my car was free. As a way to thank these drenched, muddy men profusely for helping me, I offered them strawberries, which Helene had just given me. (Thanks, Helene!). I think, though, that the excitement of helping a white woman’s truck out of a sticky situation on a lazy Sunday afternoon was more than enough thanks already. I continued on my way. Still not knowing where I was going, but for obvious reasons, not about to turn around and go over the pipes again.
It was another hour before I reached home. But I did. And now as I sit here typing this story, I ponder the irony that two weeks in a row I’ve managed to get myself royally lost on this farm. Perhaps, though, these are blessings from another realm, helping me ultimately find my way and my place on this farm? Maybe…