All Peoples Christian Center is like a family. And Kitty is the favorite older brother. Since we started the afterschool gardening mentorship program Kitty’s name, short for Keyontay, echos through the garden the ENTIRE time. “Kitty what’s this?! Kitty!? What’s that?!” 1st and 2ndgraders are incredibly curious. And Kitty loves to share. He has a special affinity with herbs. His grandmother was from Louisiana and learned to heal using medicinal herbs. This knowledge was passed down to her from her ancestors. The garden is one way Kitty can feel close to her while keeping the traditions alive. Last week Kitty made and shared a lavender-rosemary-vanilla tea. A family recipe. He added mint and sage to give it an extra healing kick. All of the herbs were straight from the garden, and no joke, it was delicious!
While little ones run around the garden. Planting. Watering. Laughing. Scavenger hunting. Tasting edible flowers. Learning where their food comes from. Understanding that soil is everything. They also get to hang out, learn, and look up to Kitty.Written: 10th November 2011
