Covid-19 revealed to us the importance of growing our own food. Social distancing, reducing trips to the market, and consuming healthy food are easily among the best ways we can protect ourselves from the threat of the virus. Gardening has also become a way for many people to cope and stay positive during the pandemic.
At Xavier Learning Community (XLC) in Chiang Rai, Thailand, Fr Vinai Boonlue SJ is leading staff and students in vegetable gardening and poultry raising. We are planting vegetables and fruits to help secure our own food, as well as to save money.
“We decided to plant vegetables because we would like our students to experience the life they had back home. Since all of our students belong to ethnic minorities, they have experience in planting and their skills can help our community,” said Fr Vinal.
The plants in our garden include eggplant, bamboo, chili peppers, banana, long beans, lemongrass, cabbage, salad greens, ginger, rice, mangoes, and lemons.
We have already harvested salad greens, chili peppers, lemongrass, and eggs from our chickens.
The Covid-19 pandemic has taught us the importance of working together and helping each other. We also realised that something we don’t often think is important like where we get our food could become very significant and necessary. Ultimately, we learned not to give up, but to always keep the hope burning, like a candle ablaze through the night.
Narongdet Chuanchuenchom is a student at Xavier Learning Community, a Jesuit institution of higher learning in Chiang Rai, Thailand.