Fairy Godmother

While we were on holiday in Victoria Falls,  our hosts took us to an authentic African restaurant,  created by a former white farmer who had her farm confiscated by the Mugabe regime.  Left with nothing, but not wanting to leave her country,  she set about creating a new life and means of income,  by creating Dusty Roads, a restaurant located in the poorer end of the township,  where the maids and other staff from our lodge lived.  Her restaurant is a clear example of how necessity breeds authentic creativity - she scoured local markets, and rubbish dumps to source the materials she turned into usable decorations for the house she turned into her restaurant. She explained it was nothing new, not a gimmicky, trendy thing to do. With limited income, everyone has to do this in the township.  

Like a scene from a children's story book,

After the fairy waves her wand,

Familiar objects stand magically transformed.

Battered benches become bookshelves,

Oil cans transform into coloured pots for herbs,

Old kettles punched through with diamond holes

Hang from the ceiling, like Cinderella's chandelier.

In the garden, more magic is on display - 

Doors become table tops, with ghosts of hinges, handles,

Empty sauce bottles are filled with flowers,

A bath, one side removed, becomes a sofa, 

A sink, a chair, both stuffed with sacking cushions.

A kind of naive delight grows with each discovery;

This place won't be changing back from a restaurant

To a simple township home, come midnight. 

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