The commencement of the journey transpired when my son commenced his college education. During that period, I started preparing, albeit without a definite destination in mind. Prior to the pandemic, my students had opportunities to volunteer at overseas Confucius Institutes every year. So, before applying for this job opportunity, I had enough time and space to understand the general situation of the various institutes where my students were located. However, when it came to signing up, Zimbabwe wasn’t my first choice. After all, this continent was still too distant and unfamiliar for our family, and even for most Chinese people.

However, the need for work led us to finally decide on Zimbabwe, knowing that my mind was made up, my husband could only express his support, while my son vehemently opposed it though he did not succeed. While others were still puzzled by our choice, we had already packed our bags and set off for Zimbabwe. After more than ten years of living in the paradise of Suzhou, even in this special year of 2021, I still believe that Zimbabwe, with its unique charm, would be an ideal place for me to fulfill my dream of experiencing something different. Upon arrival, when we entered the courtyard that was prepared for us by the University of Zimbabwe, my unique courtyard life began immediately, amidst the pleasant surprise.The house we lived in was a detached bungalow, with a yard enclosed by wire mesh, roughly 60 square meters in size. We planted mango trees, banana trees, guavas, mulberry trees, and some other unknown shrubs and flowers. In my eyes, such a large yard and lawn were a natural chicken farm. At first, because there was no chicken coop and the wire mesh enclosure needed to be replaced or repaired, our six beautiful roadrunners started wandering around the yards after being tied under the trees for a week. My husband’s task every evening was to chase after the chickens around the yard. With the chickens scratching and pecking here and there every day, occasionally two roosters would fight, and the hens would occasionally lay eggs, the yard suddenly became much livelier. But raising chickens for us was a mixed blessing. We witnessed the hatching of chicks from their shells, the warm yellow fluff, eating and drinking, all bringing us joy for half a day; the two handsome roosters crowing and running around energetically also made us feel refreshed. Nevertheless, the feeling of frustration was unimaginable when we lost most of the chickens due to heavy rains, wild cats, or mysterious disappearances or illnesses. The fragility of life was evident here.

The idea of farming actually stemmed from raising chickens. A neighbor, knowing that we raised chickens, casually remarked, “If you raise chickens, you should also farm! Chickens can have vegetables to eat, and the land can be fertilized.” It sounded perfect! Moreover, the previous occupants of the house should have planted vegetables in one corner of the yard, but because no one took care of it for a long time, that corner was overgrown with weeds and piled with garbage. So, we started by picking up trash, then hired someone to dig and tidy up the land, and then we waited for the rain. As luck would have it, the rainy season arrived as scheduled, with extremely abundant rainfall. I planted all the seeds I had on hand. Besides the abundant harvest of lettuce and amaranth, the corn and alfalfa we planted also grew well. The only problem was that taking care of this piece of land was too exhausting. There were always endless weeds to pull and fertilize. Even ignoring the cost of time, the vicious mosquitoes in the field were unbearable for me. Plus, the cost of buying fertilizer and hiring someone to dig the land seemed to far exceed the cost of buying vegetables. The fertilizers collected from raising chickens before were minimal and insufficient; the cost outweighed the benefits, and my enthusiasm for farming gradually waned. This year, that piece of land has become barren, with no harvest at all. But the seeds are still there, and I will regain my enthusiasm and start anew next rainy season.

The joy and happiness brought to us by Laifu are immeasurable and indescribable. Whether it was running around the yard looking for a ball to bring to you, or playing with a small car tire on the lawn, or lying upside down waiting for you to scratch its itch, or sneaking into your bedroom quietly, or desperately chasing wild cats or chasing chickens, every day of its companionship brought us comfort and joy, for which we are grateful for the opportunity to be with it.

Like our chickens at home, Laifu also fell ill once. One day we noticed that it seemed to have a poor appetite, not eating much, and it didn’t seem so excited when we took it out, resting after walking a short distance. We didn’t pay too much attention to it for the first two days, but on the third evening, we started to get nervous. Fortunately, the UZ’s veterinary hospital had someone on duty 24 hours a day. The doctor took blood samples for testing, gave it injections, and medication, and two days later, it was back to normal. The problem diagnosed by the doctor was an infection from tick bites, and he helped us order regular anti-tick medicine to solve the problem. This time, the intervention of humans had an immediate effect. But the destructive power and danger of those tiny ticks were chilling.

In addition to chickens and the dog, we also raised more than a dozen pigeons, a pair of turkeys, and three geese. Each new team member’s joining has a heartwarming story. The first six pigeons were bought by Caiyun and her husband Jiahao on our behalf. When the pigeons arrived, the pigeon coop was not prepared. Jiahao and the driver used various materials available in the yard to build a home for the pigeons that night. That day and thereafter, it was not uncommon to see the masterpieces of workers’ resourcefulness, which showed the locals’ strong ability to solve problems using local materials. That group of pigeons settled here and hatched three or four pairs of squabs. Witnessing their birth and growth, and seeing them cooing and playing in the yard, made me feel calm and peaceful. But what was despairing was that one night, a wild cat attacked the pigeon coop, the squabs were lost, and the flock scattered and never returned. I often saw a few pigeons foraging on the campus, and I am quite sure they were ours, but I couldn’t bring them back home with me. They must have found a safer place to stay. Life is like this, though I was saddened on loosing these pigeons, they were content in their new residence. All I can do is rebuild the loft, buy new pigeons, and give myself some comfort where possible.

The reason for raising geese was because many people said that geese can prevent snakes. I later discovered that geese are actually very good at looking after homes. Once it detects a stranger, it will first issue a shrill warning, then stretch its neck and rush towards it. At some point one of our neighbor’s child who had visited at our house was scared by the geese that she screamed and ran away. My journey of raising geese was also full of twists and turns. First of all, there are very few local geese farmers in Zimbabwe, and there are almost no geese sellers in the market. This made it difficult for us to buy the geese. One of our Chinese friends bought two geese and gave them to us, and we named the white one Xiaobai and the gray one Xiaohui. Later, because there were no male geese at our friend’s house, we gave him the white male and got another female white one. The friend also gave us a pair of beautiful turkeys, which we named Dajin and Xiaojin. Unfortunately, the female white geese was attacked by something unknown to us, injured its head and died two days later. It was a relief when Dajin and Xiaojin hatched two broods of chicks last year, but in the end, none of them could grow up. We are now looking forward to the new year, when new little lives will be born and grow.

As I have passed the age of 50 which is called “the Age of Knowing Destiny” by Confucius in his Analects, I once thought that I had gone through all the vicissitudes of life and had a thorough understanding of life. But today, when I think about it carefully, I realize that even though I have some experience, I still have to worry about gains and losses and find it difficult to deal with myself. Throughout my three years in Zimbabwe, I encountered a number of unforeseen obstacles at work and in life, which repeatedly made me reevaluate my personality and character. I also encountered a number of hurdles that repeatedly led my spirit to grow and evolve. The life in the courtyard is quiet and busy, in which I have personally experienced sacrifices and gains, gains and losses, and truly understand the meaning of the so-called “Endless Life or Life goes on and on”, and I have once again begun to consider about how to live and work,  learning to balance the two. Some methods and attitudes can make up for the lack of character and personality training; and heal the anxiety and impatience that may have accumulated for many years.

Among all these, the Zimbabweans’ attitude of respect and reverence for life touches my heart the most. I experienced this when my mother died of a cerebral hemorrhage while we were completely unprepared. For a long time, I was stuck in deep pain of bereavement and couldn’t extricate myself. I was exhausted physically and mentally, but it was still difficult to convince myself to accept the reality. When I first arrived in Zimbabwe, if I saw news of a death in the family of one of my coworkers, I would automatically become depressed. “This is what life is,” a local friend once told me as we were discussing this. This sentence shocked me deeply. Is life something that our emotions or abilities can grasp? The passage of life has nothing to do with our heartache or our best efforts. My colleagues just tried to raise money, attend funerals and express condolences.

The same goes for plants and animals, they do what they can with little human intervention. I once asked a security guard to transplant two roses for me that he dug up and planted. I later checked with him again and again whether the flowers will be good and he assured me that this flower has a strong vitality and has no problem! After two or three days, the leaves on the branches dried up and I was worried thinking it will not bud. I extremely regretted hiring an unprofessional gardener, I had to cut off the remaining green branches and inserted them into the soil, hoping that the cuttings would survive. I water it carefully every morning and evening checking if the branches have sprouted. As a result, the cutting branches were completely dry, but new shoots sprouted where I cut off the branches! It is not easy for us to choose to believe when we cannot see. But life is like this, life and death, eternal. The flowers in the yard that bloom in the rainy season have their branches and leaves withered and lifeless in the dry season, but life and hope are silently nurtured in this dryness. This is true for flowers and plants, as well as for animals and people.

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