IN the dusty outskirts of Chinhoyi, in Alaska, a 63-year-old widow has found a unique way to turn stones into “bread”.

Armed with only a hammer, chisel, and shovel, 63-year-old Gogo Nyarai Pariche has survived the harshest conditions while raising children and grandchildren through artisanal quarry stone mining.

Every pound is a heartbeat of survival in a journey born out of necessity, after a road traffic accident claimed her husband’s life in 1988.

Left with four young children, she picked up tools mostly associated with men and carved her destiny.

“When my husband died in 1988 in a road accident, I had nothing. I had no formal job, which meant no income, but the children needed to eat and go to school. I told myself that if men could break stones, then so could I, to survive with my children,” she said.

Decades later, her story is written on her hands. They are swollen, rough, and marked by years of pounding granite. Each day at work brings the risk of smashed fingers, broken nails, and dust that chokes the lungs.

“This work is painful. Sometimes the stones cut you, sometimes they fall on your feet. But the worst is when we sell to middlemen who give us almost nothing. They take our sweat,” she added.

Her perseverance has not gone unnoticed. Other women in the community have followed her path, breaking stones side by side, united in the struggle for survival.

“Our mother, as we call her here, showed us that even if life is hard, women can still provide. We are learning from her strength. Staying at home is not an option. We need to take care of our families. We sell a tonne equivalent of 12 full wheelbarrows for US$25, but most of the time, we are crooked by middlemen who approach our clients by the road before they see us,” noted another artisanal miner, Mrs Modesta Pariche.

Another artisanal miner, Mr Wilson Jonasi, added, “Before, I used to leave my wife at home while I came here to the quarry alone. But it caused problems; we would fight over money because she didn’t understand how hard it was to earn. Now, I bring her with me, and we work side by side. It has reduced violence in our home because we share the struggle and the little we make. I have also taught her the skills, and together we are now a team.”

From sunrise to sunset, the quarry is more than a workplace; it is a testament to women’s resilience in the face of adversity.