About two weeks ago we worked together as staff and children to harvest the maize on our Enterprise Farm. We started at 8 a.m. and worked until a little after 12 in the HOT (emphasize BLAZING HOT) sun. It was an enjoyable time despite the dust, heat, hard work of lugging heavy bags and the blackjacks that stick all over your clothing!!! At about noon the porridge was ready and we stopped to enjoy a nice snack of soy beans and maize porridge.
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| The tractor carried maize after being hand-picked. It also carried children who thought riding in the back wagon was the best part of the whole day! |
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| Acacia, Toby, Micah and Johnny help hand-harvest alongside a farmworker. |
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| Some of our girls from David Family enjoy a break and some nice HOT porridge on a very HOT day! |
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| Jill, Alair, Nancy and I were full of blackjacks--little sticky seeds from a weed that grows among the maize. It takes what seems like forever to pick them all off! |
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| Aunt Grace and I worked side-by-side in the early part of the morning. It was relaxing to be in the field with such a good friend! |
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| Being out in the fields together, working, talking, laughing and sharing stories is one of the best things about harvesting together!!! It is a chance to interact with some people that we rarely get a chance to spend time with due to our varying schedules here at New Hope. |
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| After about 2 hours of work I never saw the boys working on the actual harvesting of the maize. They were thereafter found "Helping" with the tractor! |
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| Uncle Jimmy Bosco and Geoff work side-by-side in the early part of the day. |
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| Children and staff interact on an entirely different level out in the field. It is a great opportunity for deepening relationships outside the norm. |
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| I didn't get many pictures of Kevin that day, so here is one with him in the center working alongside Johnny. |
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| Mmmmmmm, boiling hot maize porridge fresh from the open fire. |
By growing our own maize we significantly offset the operational costs of feeding our children!!! I don't know the exact numbers, but not only do we grow maize and other crops on the Enterprise Farm, but each individual family group (we have seven at present, with an average of 23 children in each) maintains their own gardens which serve to assist in providing food. The schools also keep gardens and use the yield to offset the cost of feeding the children break (maize porridge) and lunch (posho-from maize flour and beans) each day.
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