Just Another Day at Work…

Our first visit of the day was to the Governor’s complex where we would meet with the Agriculture Director of Panjshir province. We arrived, as usual, with a two vehicle convoy including the requisite PRT military Civil Affairs Team (CAT), our USDA Ag Advisor and our “mujh” guards. The guards stayed with the vehicles and we were escorted to the Director’s office on the second floor of the large, well built concrete structure. The window of the office looked out onto a picturesque snow capped mountain but a peek at the ceiling revealed a bad case of mold. The team sat around a conference table and we were all offered “chie” (tea) with some wrapped candy. Soon after, the Director walked in, a gregarious man, small in stature, dressed in casual khaki, with a uniquely shaved goatee and a wide grin. He shook everyone’s’ hands vigorously and was outwardly excited to have the camera pointing in his direction. Then it was business as usual. The group discussed on-going projects in the area, success stories and where resources were needed. At the conclusion of the meeting we thanked the Director for his hospitality and he informed us he was going to personally escort us to some successful projects in the district.

First up was the master bee keeper who was introduced to bee keeping by the PRT a year before. He was trained and given two hives to learn the art. He was so successful that he became the distributer and trainer for the 400 other families in the province who were chosen to become bee keepers. This enterprise would be instrumental in giving families a new business model where they would be able to provide bees for pollination of fruit trees and sell the honey produced by the hives. We were ushered into the mud walled family compound where we were greeted by children of all ages. The bee keeper escorted the entourage through his house, up some stairs in the cramped mud brick house, up onto his roof. As we stepped out onto the roof there was a distinct noise – a constant buzzing that was obviously hundreds of excited bees. The master bee keeper was proud to show us his hives, now up to four, and he even opened some up to show us a queen. He did this without any protective gear or smoker with bees encircling him and us! Fortunately no one was stung and the visuals were outstanding. We interviewed the bee keeper and then it was off to the next project. Before we could re-enter the house to go back downstairs, the interpreter asked us to wait a minute until we were given the all clear to enter. You see, the man had to make sure the lady of the house was hidden from the view of strangers before we could walk through his home. It has almost become normal for me to not see women up close in this place. There are so many children who are excited to see us and curious men everywhere – but I have never seen a woman up close even in her burka. While we are in the villages they will stay a far distance away, walk on the opposite side of the street or just avoid being seen all together. We said our goodbyes after refusing an offer of “chie” and a moment to sit at his table explaining that we had a tight schedule and we were not being rude. He understood and bid us good day with a handshake and a touch of his right palm to his heart.

The next project was one we had tried to film a day before but because women were working in the field we couldn’t do any filming. Today with the Director’s help and a cooperative villager we were able to get into the field and get the visuals we needed. The story here was another capacity building enterprise that was aimed at increasing income for the farmers. Fruit trees had been planted throughout these wheat fields and there was “double cropping” taking place. The idea was that while these apricot and cherry trees were growing the fields could still be used for the low income wheat crop. As the wheat was watered and fertilized so too would the trees. But when the trees matured the farmer would have high value crops of fruit and his income would increase significantly. This too would be an opportunity for the bee keepers to offer their bees for pollination as the valley has been void of bees for many years. I took the opportunity of the surroundings and the story to interview the Director on the spot. With the help of our interpreter the interview was a success. As I finished the interview I realized that we had attracted quite a crowd out in the middle of these fields. Of course, it was a crowd of children, all boys (the girls were probably in school as school hours are split for boys and girls) and many of the elders of the village. It was quite an event to have the Director of Agriculture here in their fields.

After we had lunch back at the base we headed out for our last project of the day. A few miles from the base was a woodlot that had just been planted with donated cuttings of a fast growing poplar tree. The idea here was that landowners with at least a “jer1b” (1/2 of an acre) near a water source could start private woodlot establishments that would help to produce over time, more trees for planting and firewood. Due to the many years of war the area has been devastated by the denuding of trees. This in turn has led to a lot of erosion and runoff along the rivers and streams. In addition because of the lack of trees the residents of the valley have used cow dung as a source of fire and heat which is not healthy. The owners of these wood lots also promised that after a year they would take cuttings from every third tree and sell them to others who wanted to participate. This way more woodlots would be established and business and trees would flourish. It would take up to seven years for this and other lots to have full grown trees but it is this long term benefit that the PRT’s are striving for.

Finally as we were getting ready to return to the base our ag advisor told us about this beautiful valley just up the road from where we were and offered to take us there to have a look. We drove not even a mile up the side of a mountain just past the village of Obdara when before me was what I imagine Shangri La to look like. Below us and stretching across the lush green, terraced valley was a scene I would never expect to have seen in Afghanistan. Right below us was a flowing river that carved its way through the valley. In the distance were rolling hills that framed snow covered mountains beyond them and in between the mountains and the river were ribbons of green in different shades. The terraced hills of wheat glistened in the late evening sun. As we looked in wonderment at the scene in front of us, small rocks came rolling of the hills behind us and we turned to see a small heard of mountain goats far above us on the hillside. Out of the corner of my eye I glimpsed two little boys giggling at these outsiders looking on in amazement at what they saw everyday of their young lives. They hovered around us, conversing with our “mujh” guards and I couldn’t help be drawn to them. I asked them to take a picture with me and with the encouragement of the guards they obliged. As I took in my surroundings and thought of the future of the two boys I just hugged, I hoped beyond hope that this valley could be seen by other visitors in peaceful times. I could actually see this area having ski resorts in the winter, with hiking, kayaking and fishing taking place in the spring and summer. But would it ever be? Well, I guess I can dream, can’t I?

We returned to the base as clouds started to role in for our usual evening rain storm. I got one last interview in with the State Department PRT Commander. The only civilian PRT commander in all of Afghanistan - due to the secure nature of this FOB.

And then we got the news...it was just another day at work - in Afghanistan. We would be on lock down tomorrow due to a security issue up north of the valley. Yes, even here at our safest FOB we are reminded that we are still in Afghanistan, still in a war zone...