- Dear Family and Friends,
-
- This week electoral authorities in Zimbabwe again stated
that combined Presidential, Parliamentary and council elections will not
be deferred and are to be held on the 9th March 2008. It is hard to believe
that Zimbabwe will be ready for an election in just 56 days time. The logistics
of an election are enormous under normal circumstances but mammoth in a
country which has all but collapsed.
-
- There is no fuel at filling stations, no food in the
shops, extremely limited supplies of bank notes, electricity only in the
middle of the night and water off or dirty most of the time. Telephone
communications are in a shocking state with new cell phone lines only available
on the black market. Roads are falling apart, postal deliveries increasingly
erratic and in some areas - including mine - house deliveries have not
been made for three months. In rural areas there are reports of roads and
bridges washed away due to heavy rains and flooding - and so the list goes
on and on.
-
- Every aspect of an election from the campaigning to the
advertising, voting, monitoring and counting is swamped with problems -
not the least of which is that so far there is only one candidate and one
party to vote for.
-
- Looking for sanity, even inspiration, in such bizarre
times, I turned to a book of poetry sent to me by an ex Zimbabwean. Every
day of the year has a poem and that prescribed for the 9th of March is
by an unknown author.
-
- Do not stand at my grave and weep,
- I am not there, I do not sleep.
-
- I am a thousand winds that blow.
- I am the diamond glints on snow.
- I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
- I am the gentle autumn's rain.
-
- When you awaken in the morning's hush,
- I am the swift uplifting rush
- of quiet birds in circled flight,
- I am the stars that shine at night.
-
- Do not stand at my grave and cry.
- I am not there, I did not die.
-
- We are a country dying but not dead - we still have hope.
Surely this
- poem for the 9th of March holds some prophetic meaning.
-
-
- Until next time,
- thanks for reading,
-
-
- love cathy.
-
-
- Copyright cathy buckle 12 January 2008
- www.cathybuckle.com
- My books: "African Tears" and "Beyond
Tears" are available in South
- Africa from: books@clarkesbooks.co.za and in the UK from:
- orders@africabookcentre.com
- To subscribe/unsubscribe to this newsletter, please write
- to: cbuckle@mango.zw
-
-
- From Cathy Buckle
-
- Dear Family and Friends,
-
- Correction and further to my letter entitled: "56
Days," stating the 9th of March to be Zimbabwe's election date, my
source is now unable to confirm that this is in fact the exact date. I
therefore apologise unreservedly.
-
- Love, cathy.
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