Youth Voices: Water, Rice, and Everything Nice

Picture this: You are out on the farm (the integrated organic farm). You go to use the bathroom, a little metal shack with the only glimpse of light from an opening near the ceiling. After you finish, you attempt to nudge the door open. Nothing happens. So you push the door harder. Nothing happens. You brace your body and push on the door with all your might. Nothing happens. You plan to shout out "I'm stuck" for help, but you don't know the word "stuck" (atascada) in Spanish. So instead, you bang on the door and weekly cry "Hellloooooo…" No one answers. You call your friend, but she's out working with the animals. So you wait, patiently, for someone else to come to use the bathroom.

Don't worry. I escaped. After 10 minutes of pleading to the universe for help, another person came along to use the bathroom. She easily yanked the door to the bathroom open and I tumbled out, red from my embarrassment and energy exertion.

At this point, I had less than 30 minutes to finish planting my lettuce for my research project, so I snapped back into action and paced back to my table of plants. I had to plant, fertilize (fertilizar), and apply my treatment to my babies (lettuce) before the bus left to take us back to campus. I especially had to stick to my schedule because I would be heading out on a trip across the country after lunch...[CONTINUE READING]