harvest time

the week between Christmas and New Years ended up being when the rice was ready to be harvested so many an hour were spent in the fields.

Odette taking me out to check the fields and make sure they were looking ready

dry enough to fall off when hit against a metal barrel = ready to be harvested.
and do it fast before the birds and animals get to it

yes that's a machete in my hand.
and they say im not an environment volunteer.

always put the rice in grain down so it falls into the bucket

team hit the rice on the barrel until it falls off vs. team cut the rice off.  i was elected to the hitting team with Catherine, one of the elders of the groupement (i dont think they trusted me with a large knife).  I particularly loved her dental fabric that day.

some of the women who couldn't come would send their daughters in their places, since the schools were on break anyway.  i still dont understand how this girl was able to wear a sweater in the middle of the day while chopping rice stalks for hours on end.

it's really unfortunate that i didnt get to take a picture of the huge bags of rice being carried away on the back of the moto at the end of every day-- so gratifying.