And sitting as permanent fixtures in the wetlands are three rusting military tanks, remnants of the war that once crossed this plain - and, for Hodges, reminders that human intelligence can be put toward better uses. Over the next 30 years, the iron molecules will disperse into the water, to be converted by the mangroves into a new useable form. There are other punctuation marks as well. Hodges's office sits in the beach palace of former Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie. The imperial tennis court is now the foundation slab for a new shrimp hatchery shed.
Aloes growing off the palace porch soothe the occasional sunburn.
Everything has a purpose. Some, handpicked by Hodges , have gone overseas to earn advanced degrees to ensure the farm's future. The state plans to privatize its half. Eventually, Hodges will walk away, too, leaving behind what he hopes will be a model for a new era of agriculture. Standing alongside an irrigation sluice, he watches a seeder slowly cross a new salicornia field.