Elannah ’25 and Finn ’25, recount a day learning about permaculture, splitting off into working groups, and making new friendships.
Our morning began at Papa’s cafe once again, where we ate a nice breakfast while enjoying the views of Lake Victoria. We then headed out for an agriculture lesson, where we explored many of the permaculture gardens Mainsprings uses to feed their community. We learned about the importance of balance and cultivating a relationship with nature. We then broke into our rotation groups, for farming, cooking, and teaching. In the teaching group—the Happy Hyenas—we went to a kindergarten class. We got a chance to meet the kids and observe how their classes are run. We were then invited to lead the class in our own games, and the time before lunch passed very quickly. We left the class holding hands with many of the new kids we met. For dinner, we split into our groups once again for village night. We had such a fun time meeting new people and left with our stomachs extremely full.
-Elannah ’25
It was Fun Friday here in Kitongo, Tanzania! The few and the brave took a chance at round two for the sunrise run, however, many slept in after the intense and humbling basketball game we had the day before. At breakfast, we tried cassava, a root vegetable I had never heard of. It was not my favorite, but it’s always good to try new things when traveling. Three chai’s later, Lazaro, the tsar of permaculture here at Mainsprings, gave us a thorough tour of the abundant and unique farms/gardens here. After our tour Lazaro led us to the outdoor classroom, his passion shined while he was educating us on the benefits of permaculture and symbiotic relationships in plants. We finished with a song and a saying that the students here learn, “perm-a-culture, perm-a-culture, Earth care, people care, future care”; it truly emphasizes how permaculture could benefit all. We went straight to the group projects after.
The Lit Lions are known as the hardest-working group, and that was evident in the farming shift today. It was perhaps the best watering of plants I have ever seen, all carefully orchestrated by our fearless leaders Lazaro and Mr. Pitcher. We were so good at our job that Lazaro brought us up to livestock city, where the grass is green and the cows are pretty. Sophie impressed us with her animal impressions, and we were amazed at the view of Lake Victoria we had at the top of the “city”. We rushed to lunch where we ate with some of the older kids with whom we bonded over our struggles in chemistry and math. We stayed in the dining hall for our special presentation. Right from the start we were all blown away by the dancing and drumming performance put on by the students. After the drumming, many academic and club presentations showcased the student’s hard work and creativity. We were next. The students upstaged us so much that it was hard to even walk up the stage without feeling embarrassed. Our improvised a cappella and dance moves to Party in the U.S.A. by Miley Cyrus were successful-ish, but we had a great time, and that was all that mattered. Our dance moves were maybe too good because during the second student drumming/dancing show, we were brought on stage to dance with them. We struggled, but the students loved that we tried, and erupted in cheer when Mr. Emerson and Ms. Parker joined the circle. After the performance, we had no break until the soccer game. We had many varsity soccer players on this trip who played with the faculty, but yet again, we were humbled by the all-student team. I played for a little bit, barely touching the ball, but I didn’t want to because it was the most violent soccer game I had ever seen.
Our first real break came before the village dinner night. We freshened up and walked over with our groups, a Maasai warrior, and some of the girls to three houses in the local village. The Lit Lions feasted on beans, rice, cabbage, chicken, and donuts until we couldn’t eat anymore. After the dinner we danced, sang, played games, caught a duck and took many pictures. I was amazed by the hospitality and grace that the hosts showed by cooking dinner for our group, and we were all so glad we got the chance to meet them. However, our night was bittersweet. Mr. Pitcher, who has been an amazing leader on our trip, teaching us about the history of this place, and reminding us of the importance of our presence, had to depart home early due to personal circumstances. His witty humor and unfailing generosity will be missed by everyone here at Mainsprings. It will be especially hard for the Lit Lions, as we no longer have the best teacher with us in the field. Mr. Emerson, Ms. Parker, and their respective groups think they have a chance, but Mr. Pitcher will always be leading us from afar like the great leaders Gandalf and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Lit Lions forever. Goodnight.
-Finn ’25
