Rustler's Valley: return to the lodge

As we descended, we caught intermittent glimpses of a figure in the distance, probably making his way towards us. We smiled to see the person whose team had given us such a welcome on the previous evening - Jappie.  After greetings all around, we set off, treading the soft, dusty road back to the Lodge.

Before long a Toyota Hilux came past: neighbour Ray Strydom. After initial words with Jappie he looked at me and, taking the cue, I introduced myself and the team. He invited me to speak in English.

Included in his first comments was a reference to Sericea Lespedeza (see the “Fodder crops” chapter), and it was no surprise to establish that he knew the late John Fair and is familiar with Alan Savory’s Holistic Management [watch Savory’s TED talk for an excellent summary or refer to the Savory Institute website for more]. Sericea Lespedeza was championed by John Fair, who as a matter of principle termed it “prosperity lucerne” rather than its colloquial term, “poor man’s lucerne”. In some quarters the crop is regarded with a measure of apprehension as it can overrun other vegetation. For Strydom this is no problem. “Just bail it!” he says. Indeed, this is what has happened on lands adjacent to Rustler’s Valley.

I mention that we have come to see how the Rustler’s project is working, adding that private sector initiatives stand a better chance of success than government ones. He does not really respond and I realise that security on farms is something closer to his heart. "Farming is not for sissies", he says grimly, and after more words with Jappie, whom he refers to as his friend, he drives off.

As we resume our walk back to the lodge, Jappie begins speaking about life on the farm. It would only be later that I realised that although he is in charge of EarthRise Mountain Lodge, that he lives in the neighbouring Franschoek Village, not in Naledi Village which is located on Rustler’s Valley farm. The difference between the two villages and its implications would only become clearer to me later on in our stay.

Working on the mines showed him the potential of education, and of educated, trained women in particular, who could do many of the same jobs as men. The unrealised potential of staff children on farms and disappointment in farmer support for them is something that he feels keenly.

No one is stupid! Not everyone can be the driver or do some particular job. He speaks of the importance of finding a good way of using the people.

He picks up on the issue of security. Having buy-in from staff is better than having the assistance of police from town. When you move villages, where the staff have been living, or change your mind about allowing them to keep a few cattle on your land, you break trust. I later find out that both incidents referred to have indeed happened in the near vicinity.

But lack of education is the one thing stopping organic development on farms. Boys get more opportunities than girls after primary school, since there are fewer social inhibitors for them in the township to where they must go to pursue a high school education. He speaks of his journey to discovering the presence of three boarding schools for girls in Qwa-Qwa and the solution this offered to young girls on farms with limited prospects of furthering their education. On the farm women can do many of the jobs done by men, and he lists testing soil and work in the dairy as examples.

“It is education that enables you to stand on your own. Education will take what is here and make it grow”.

We leave the dusty road and take the steps up to EarthRise Mountain Lodge – and breakfast.