Farm

The weather as of late has been spectacular: daytime temperatures in the high 70s, cool breezes coming off the Bay of Bengal for most of the day, and a ‘clean’ feeling from the last few weeks of rain. While I can’t seem to get a straight answer if the monsoon season is finished or not—some say it is over, others say there is another 3-4 weeks—there is little doubt that the most blazing of temperatures are behind us and the next few months are to be enjoyed. Of course, when it is so hot, you cannot rationally play outside for much time, and this has been a real negative about being here with Kaia. Compared to the United States, there are very few parks and open spaces that are kid and family friendly, so with super heat and little places to play outside, it has meant more time inside than I would have liked. For those of you who know indiapapa well, you know that I have long been an advocate for experiential/outdoor learning for children and there is a touch of irony that I have been unable to pursue this since coming to India with my own child. For this reason, it should be no surprise that I was looking forward with great anticipation to yesterday’s Kids Central field trip to a nearby farm. As well, Kaia was beside himself looking forward to seeing the ‘tractor and plow…we were ready for some fun out of doors.

The ride from Kids Central to the farm was a bit longer than I had expected, about 45 minutes down the Old Mahalibalipuram road, a road that floods terribly whenever it rains. Even though it has been close to a week since the last heavy rains, there are still huge pools of water on the road and vacant lots have been turned into small ponds. Of course, 1 week old standing water, next to a busy road, has turned the liquid that shade of blue-black that comes when you mix all the watercolors together. Or in this case, oil, trash, mud and animal waste. It is not a pretty sight. Throw on top of that the issue of mosquito breeding and infectious disease and you have a public health nightmare just about every time it rains. Anyway, we eventually made it down to the farm and Kaia immediately zeroed in on finding that tractor (see photo).

I was pleasantly surprised when we got there to learn that this farm is a 100% organic farm, not using any synthetic fertilizers or chemicals in the cultivation of their radishes, okra, turnips and other tree crops—including mango and guava. Again, indiapapa has a long history with farming organically, so this was a nice treat to visit a local farm and see what they’re up to. The farm was about 11 acres in size with close to half in cultivation. Many of the trees were still immature and a few years from meeting their full production capacity, and like with many organic farms, the weeds were numerous, but being managed nevertheless. Rain catchments were being used, as well as drip irrigation and some other water conservation techniques. As for animals, there was one cow, but the other farm staples that many come to expect in the farm landscape narrative—pigs, chickens, horses, etc—we nowhere to be found. Unfortunately, for Kaia, neither was any heavy machinery. This meant, of course, no tractor (see 'tractor's gone' photo).

The farm ended up being a lot further from Kids Central than many expected and, perhaps, the amenities of the farm left some parents disappointed. There were about 25 children and their parents and I noticed about 8-10 parents just standing around with their kids, unwilling to engage the situation either because they might get muddy or the farm was falling short of their expectations. We were told that we could roam around the farm fields and let the children play—and they WILL figure it out—so Kaia and I spent most of the time catching the numerous frogs and grasshoppers under the trees. I showed some of the frogs that we had caught to some of the other children and I heard a parent comment “well I guess there ARE some animals at this farm”. All I could think was that here was another urbanite void of imagination and creativity in the outdoors and expecting to be entertained. It was at that point that I realized how much I missed having my own (large) garden and being able to take Kaia out into it. Living here in India has had its benefits, but we are losing out on this time to learn and grow together in living soil. I’ve taught enough kids to see what happens when you take them outside and let them get dirty in the Earth. I am ready to get back and create a place where Kaia can do the same.

While there wasn’t any tractor, Kaia and I had a great time. In addition to the frogs and grasshoppers, Kaia got to meet another one of his long-time obsessions (the school bus, see photo) and pull out some immature radishes (photo). It was so great for him to get muddy and for me to not be on high alert for stray dogs, trash or searing heat. As a bonus, on the 45 minute ride home, there were an inordinately high number of diggers and bulldozers in action along the side of the road. Kaia was in heaven.

Later in the day, I received a phone call from Kaia’s teacher at Kids Central. She was calling, she said, to apologize for the field trip and how long of a drive it was, and how the farm was not so exciting and rather muddy. She said that she was calling all of the parents to apologize because this was the first time they had gone there and they didn’t know about some of these things. Of course, I told her how silly such an apology was and that we had a GREAT time. She was kind of taken aback, but very thankful saying that we were ‘too sweet’. After hanging up with her, all I could think was that a number of parents had complained to them about the fieldtrip and, judging from the 8-10 who were unwilling to participate at the farm, I can imagine who they were. It is too bad that these folks couldn’t let go of their expectations and just embrace the experience—or at least let their children do so. Just getting these kids outside is a rare treat in this city. Take advantage of it and, for God’s sake—lighten up!

Why I Love this Time: Squeeky hugs.