Water management and patient work

Yesterday we had some heavy rains and my host had some problems getting her car up the steep hill that leads out into the road. Since this place is located in a low area, all the water comes running down hill, which is great for the vegetation but not so much for human comfort.

The problem with the water was tha it carried stones and mud, making the pavement slipery. I had to go to an area high up where the water was taking a route that wasn't favorable and give it a new course. Photos never do justice to the iclination of the terrain but the way my heart started pumping as I climbed told me it was very steep.

So I got to clearing up the area which was no easy task as all that was actually useful was the pickaxe. Both the hoe and the shovel are bad quality and proved useless against compacted soil. The pickaxe went in but only covered a small surface so I had to be patient. Lucky for me, I still have a bit of "The First Law" audiobooks left to go and that is top-notch entertainment.

Then it was time to dig up a little trench for the water to run through away from the path of the car. Great, more patience needed. A nice synchrony though, in the book they started mentioning about what a deadly weapon patience is and how not many men every learn to use it in their lives.

To add a little challenge to the whole business, I had some company that doesn't know exactly where to place themselves for the benefit of the project.

The best thing is that every time I stop working I can look around at the beautiful landscapes that surround this place. The forest extends to where the eye can see.

I wonder if I'll ever get to a place where I can enjoy such a scenery and feel like there is a lot of social dynamics at the same time. In the city I feel so good socially, always meeting new people, always learning new things, but the green is missed. Then you come to the green and everything is so silent and slow, everything is the same every day. I want balance, please?

It's likely that I'm already moving towards such balance. I've been invited to volunteer at a beach where there's both city life and Nature. They also lend you surf boards there and I'm excited to give that a chance as I've never surfed before 🏄‍♂️

Very cloudy days as you can see, but it's a refreshing break from the Brazilian heat.

Later it begin to clear up and had to face the heat carrying some gravel uphill. It wasn't much but felt like a lot 🥵

After the work is done a deserved rest with a great view ;)