During the first month of growing, this word “exchange” has continued to pop up as fast many of our refugees’ seedlings. One of our goals for this project was to create a place for refugees to interact with each other and with Columbia locals. We had hoped that the garden would create a conversation in which the common language becomes the plants, the soil, the water, and the produce. Unfortunately, last year we were not satisfied with the outcomes. We found that, like all of us, refugees tend to find their niche and stay within that, rarely branching out to interact with new people. Last year, the growers missed the first half of the idea of a Community Garden. They did an exceptional job with the “Garden” but seemed to miss the idea of “Community.”
However, with a year of growing experience and another year of English immersion came an increased confidence and familiarity in the garden. It is hard not to swell with pride when we see the “Community” aspect taking shape!
I was sent a story earlier this week about an interaction between one of our refugee growers and a Columbia native. I have omitted names for confidentiality purposes.
As you probably know, the refugee families are out in mass every evening working in their gardens. It’s almost impossible to get a hose when they are there, so I have avoided evenings and decided to go in the morning, when fewer people would be out there and I could water without waiting my turn for a hose (which could be a long wait. So, there I am: hose by a tomato plant slowling soaking each tomato as I prepared a bed for beans. Here comes a [refugee] couple. Then, the woman approaches me and asks if they can use the hose. I told her I was watering the tomatoes. She said, “Not very long…just 3 minutes”…”Sure, that’s fine” I said. Then, I noticed that the gentleman had watered their plot and was way over in the other garden watering…more like 20 minutes later. She was all this time, right in the next plot and we had talked about them being from Burma and what she was planting. I am getting perturbed and thinking, ” I’m never going to get that hose back! What was I thinking telling them they could use it?” Pretty soon, back he comes with the hose. I set it on my tomatoes that were left and continued with the bean bed. Then I noticed that he has taken the hose again and is watering my tomatoes! I’m not happy! He wants the hose back and is giving them a quick water so he can have it! The lady says to me, “He just loves watering.” I am grumbling to myself…great plan getting there in the morning…heh? As I am about to leave she comes over to me and says, “You are our neighbor. Any time we are here, we will water your garden for you”.Then, I saw how our cultures had bumped up againt each other: me, the greedy, grabby American “Christian” face to face with a kinder gentler culture….lessons to be learned here.
1,000 blog posts could be written about this story. It simply speaks volumes to the importance of our refugee program to our community. It is such a perfect example of how we can learn from each others differences while sharing our similarities. 
Our growers have not only engaged with the “locals,” but they’ve also begun to teach each other. Last year, our Burmese refugees learned that the soil in Missouri is heavy with clay. Many abandoned their first crops, built trenches and mounds, and began again.This year, the Burmese are putting to use the knowledge they gained from last year. It is easy to spot a Burmese garden plot because they sit a full foot taller than the surrounding plots with deep trenches running between their planting sites.
And our Eritrean refugees have taken notice. Eritrea has a drought prone climate, which affects the way the Eritreans farm. Many of the Eritrean growers dug the same mounds and trenches that the Burmese did; however, they then planted their seeds and seedlings into the trenches. What a great insight into the diverse livelihoods that they have come from! The Burmese come from a wet climate and plant in mounds (to increase drainage), but the Eritreans come from a dry climate and plant in trenches (to conserve water). Being the resilient people that they are, the Eritreans quickly saw the need to adjust and have begun planting in the mounds.
This has been one of the more exciting posts to be written. It has been such a good growing year as our refugees have begun to integrate into the “community” aspect of the community garden. One could have never anticipated the overwhelming success of this garden and the hope that it gives.
pstroessner
