The Garden

Mathew 6: 25-26

.Our garden began producing immediately after being planted. In the first year we delivered vegetables on a regular basis to the prison chow hall for both officer and inmate meals. Our immediate community food banks could not believe the amount of produce we were donating to them. I thanked my coworkers who were more than happy to make deliveries for us so that I could continue teaching and supervising my students as they worked in the gardens. Our Food Technology program Instructor would make different vegetarian meals from the produce we delivered to him. My students would try things like “green fried tomatoes,” “egg plant parmesan,” and “sweet potato fries.” Many growing up in the “urban desert” where McDonalds and Burger Kings were the meals of choice (many their only meal or they had nothing to eat) were amazed on how the vegetarian meals tasted.

.Fresh vegetables some of my students never ate. Having these types of meals prepared for them “farm to table” was a great learning experience. I could give them the macro nutrients and micro nutrients of everything they consumed from the garden. I had shown them what they were doing here today (creating gardens) was being replicated in urban environments across America. Once released form prison, they could contribute in a positive way promoting and working in a community gardening project. I was informed by my tutors of my student’s success once they returned home. Not all were success stories. Some unfortunately returned to old habits and were either gun downed or returned to prison on new charges. They just refused to change and payed the price for that decision. Some of them felt invincible. I called it “the fastest gun in the west syndrome.” Some one was always willing to lay claim to that title at the expense of the one carrying it.

.Making a fast buck in an urban environment without having to work hard for it was their “modus operandi.” That philosophy was what usually brought them back to prison. Being a positive influence in the community was not at the top of their priority list. Being king of the “crack house” was. In the drug trade: ” heavy is the head that wears the crown.” It usually has a target on it. All the teaching in the world couldn’t change their “money talks and bullshit walks” perspective. I knew I couldn’t reach some of them, but for those I could reach out and change that convoluted perspective, it helped in their continued future success. As we began harvesting the garden my students enjoyed the weighing and packaging of all the produce we would donate. The facilities chow hall would always have first choice of what we grew and then we would offer produce to our schools’ Food Technology program. When both of their refrigerators were filled, we then donated produce to our immediate community, and they were vey happy to receive it. I was always amazed at the poundage we harvested. I was sure to thank the good Lord, and a barn that provided eight dump trucks of “gardener’s gold.” It made a big difference for increasing our present and future yields. For my students, it was a healthy way to reconnect with the community.

To Be Continued….