Milestones Marked and in the Marking

Time is a luxury. Time should be valued, respected, honored, every minute, every second of it we can exist in, whether ecstatic and inspiring, dark and mundane, or somewhere in between. It's a luxury. It's a luxury for us to dream and make, to dream of far away places and make plans to see all the wonders of the word. And to get there is the gift.

I am beginning to understand this concept of time more and more as I get older. To me, my blog is a reflection of this time that is ephemeral. All the rich experiences and changes in life which I want to document I feel like I never have enough time to do so, leaving all these moments and untold stories, unshared. I do see the positive angle of this refection though, and that is if I am not having enough time to sit and write, I am spending those moments living, and that is a beautiful thing. But I don't want it all to be forgotten, so here is my best attempt to capture the latest few milestones marked of gardening and life.

Small hands raising BIG awareness and waking up taste buds to new flavors.

In gardening, at Larchmont Charter Elementary, where I am so happy to be teaching gardening and cooking classes, we are blowing everyone out of the water with gardening and inspiring everyone to want to be a part of this ever-growing movement towards self-reliance, sustainability, and joy. My second graders are particularly fond of the garden, especially a specific group of three girls in Ms. Jessica's class (who is an amazing person which I will talk more about later).

While I must protect their identities, I will say that they are the epitome of the "Three Sisters," the Native American planting method of cultivating squash, beans, and corn together. This companionship strengthens the crops as individuals and as a whole. Squash provides shade for the ground, keeping it moist and temperate, acting like a mulch. Beans fix nitrogen into the soil, a key component to healthy green shoots. And Corn is the sister who stands tall for the beans to grow up on. My second grade girls have such a kind, sweet and nurturing relationship with one another. I see them work together in the garden and play outside of the garden. And while they have their disagreements, they look like they'll be friends for life.

One day during garden class, I brought up the idea of somehow showcasing and sharing the garden more with our school community. This sparked the girls to talk about making herb bundles and selling Red Russian Kale and Swiss Chard, which got me thinking about sharing our Dorset apples which have just popped in little clusters on our darling tree. That was the seed of our Garden Pop-Up Stand idea.

The conversation sparked spread like wildfire, with ideas jumping left and right throughout class, ideas coming from even the shiest of our students. It was amazing to watch it all unfold, as students began collaborating and creating something independently. I knew we had to make this happen.

Student prep art work for the chalk board. 

Building math and business skills. 

On the birthday of our Garden Pop-Up Stand, we riled up the whole school during Morning Sing, which happens every Friday when all our students, teachers and parents come together to sing songs. Excitement, curiosity, creativity, and joy, radiated from our little stand which was made up of a folding table, chalkboard with prices, and a simple hinged-chalk painted, two-sided wood board, etched in neon colors, with our purpose, and which a parent donated to us. Also in attendance were our Vermicomposting Red Wigglers, which students made a tri-board display to educate participants about the importance of composting and the process.

Edible flowers of Calendula and Nasturtiums. 

It was magical to see students and parents coming early to school, working side-by-side to harvest chard and artichokes, bundling herbs and harvesting edible flowers with their children, for our stand. We couldn't have done it without parents coming to help, especially one parent who just jumped in to help facilitate students' "work shift" times of the stand. Every student took part somehow between Morning Sing singing, and working the stand. Even before the day of our stand, students worked in their classroom with Ms. Jessica to make beautiful tags for all our bounty.

Dorset apples popping in!

Globe Artichokes were harvested for sale at the Stand. 

At the stand we sold: Dorset Apples; Red Russian Kale; Dino Kale; Swiss Chard; Globe Artichokes; herb bundles of Rosemary, Thyme, Lavender and Mint; edible flowers of Calendulas, Nasturtiums, and Borage along with recipes for how to cook with them. We even sold a pepper plant which we started from seed. While we have Loquats from the tree at school, I included some from my Grandma's house to share the sweetness. We even had seed packets students made with seeds inside from plants which we "seed saved" from last season's crops, such as corn and beans. Everything sans the Loquats, were from our school garden. I had actually harvested some Loquats from our school tree, but they were in the other fridge of our 4th/5th grade cooking area, and that morning just happened like a blink-of-an-eye that I didn't get a chance to run to get them. I only had my Grandma's Loquats on hand which was for a later cooking lesson that day. While our prices ranged from $.50-$1.00, we made $87 in about an hour, including donations, and people wanted more.

It was incredible. I watched Ms. Jessica's "Shooting Stars" take ownership and pride in a project which they initiated. Students were counting money and giving back change, practicing customer service, showcasing their knowledge of everything we were offering. It was beautiful. I was so proud and happy. The next week, parents were asking about what will be available at the Stand on Friday, and we had to tell them that we'll have to think about a schedule that is sustainable and do-able, maybe bi-weekly, since it takes a bit of time and orchestration. And we could not have done it without Ms. Jessica.

Just another CrAzy hair day!

Ms. Jessica has been my garden partner-in-crime this year. Not only is she a beautiful person, but she is a passionate being about everything that life has to offer. Her zest for all the flavors of life, and food (she's The Ultimate Foodie), knows no bounds. And together, according to one supportive parent of our mutual student, we "know no bounds". I shared with Jessica the idea of the stand and she was on board immediately. We didn't tell our Dean, since ideas seem to get easily tarnished or squished when brought to the top. And although we risked our jobs, we knew it had to be done. Our Dean approached me after and just asked to be told next time. The essence of a true pop-up, at least to me, is the element of surprise. If I have gained anything this year, next to an incredibly rewarding job, it is a great friend. Ms. Jessica is one of those rare, untainted spirits, forever free and bright. I am so grateful to have met her, and so happy to announce that we are now roommates in the hipster neighborhood of Silverlake! (pictures to come). This weekend we started moving in.

Moving out and affording it solo will be a Life Milestone for me. I have lived on my own before, in the college dorms, in a studio alone, in a condo with roommates, abroad, but I have never yet paid for rent on my own. I am so excited to take this next big step into adulthood and independence :) This means more on small-space and urban gardening posts to come!

Ms. Karla's 2nd Graders tasting Arugula and Loquat Salad.

Ok, back to gardening. The ripple effect of gardening astounds me. I think it is one of the most unique attributes of this craft and way of life. I have seen it before. Gardening cultivates awareness: of the Earth, of others; a sense of self-reliance, and generosity is unavoidable. But I have never seen it so palpable as I have here at Larchmont. The most simple recipes of salad and dressings we have made in class from our harvest have got parents so excited. Parents have emailed me and told me in person how thankful they are that their child loves the salad we made in garden and makes it at least once a week for the family. Here you have a second grader teaching her family how to make a simple garden salad of mixed greens with garbanzo beans and herb dressing. Or when a first grader raves to her mom about a simple potato and celery salad with vinaigrette dressing we made in class and her mom thanks me and asks for the "magic recipe," I know that my job is being accomplished and that my place in life feels so right. A pebble-of-a-salad recipe rippled from the school garden to home, and who knows where it continues to be shared.

Loquat and Arugula Salad with Parm. Cheese.

Solace, our Organic Arugula Dealer.

But, I can't take all the credit, as the saying goes, it does "take a village to raise a child". Or in my case, the support of others in my community like this amazingly hardworking and kind woman, named Solace. Her demeanor very much fits her name. While she has so much on her plate at school, with the humble title of Office Manager, though basically running our school in the backstage, she remains graceful, kind and comforting to all the students at the lunch checkout line and everyone in our school community. She is one of those people who helped make an Arugula Loquat Salad that my co-cooking teacher Julie Johnson made with our students taste above and beyond. The Arugula was from her home garden and she brought bags of them to us, more than once, so that all 66 of my second grade students plus 22 of our 5th grade students, could have a bite. Her Arugula made understanding the concept of eating local and organic produce easier to teach with something tangible and tasteful. And in extension, it demonstrates to our students that gardening sparks generosity and that sharing is caring, especially coming from someone they are so familiar with.

Loquats from tree at "Grandma's" House.

And, the generosity expands all the way to the far reaches of Rosemead, CA where my cousins have a Loquat Tree in the backyard that has always given us fruit, and which I never paid attention to, until now. This is an example of where my educating my students and myself, brings me back home to a city where I grew up in during my own elementary school days. Although the house is technically my Aunt Jane and Uncle Robert's house, I call it my Grandma Ma's house, because that is where she took care of me when I was little. Her house is actually just one house down from my Uncle and Aunties' house. But, it is symbolically my "Grandma's house," because that is where we always get together, and that is where we still get together for family celebrations.


While we have a Loquat tree at school, there wasn't enough for all my students, so I stopped by my Grandma's house after school and got to catch-up with my cousins Jimmy and Kathy while harvesting the Loquats. I remember eating the fuzzy fruit as a kid, but nothing really excited me about the orange, fury, drop of sweet-tang. When I learned that Loquats are April's Harvest of the Month, I was ignited. Suddenly, everything was about the Loquat: it's history, flavor profile, texture, recipes, and the ball kept rolling.

My gorgeous Auntie Jane on Mother's Day.

My beautiful Grandma Ma on Mother's Day.

While we are close, I don't always get to visit my Auntie Jane, Uncle Robert, and my cousins Kat and Jimmy. But in my attempts to experiment with a Starwberry and Loquat Salsa, I saw them twice that week and even got to sit down and chat with my Auntie Jane over a slice of pizza. Who knew so many great moments could come from one simple Strawberry and Loquat Recipe. The Salsa turned out to be a hit for my third graders and their teachers! Miss Katie told me she could eat that salsa everyday :) I was so pleased to have taken a risk with something different, and to have succeeded!

Strawberry Loquat Salsa with chia corn chips.

Ms. Katie's "Wild Wolves" chowing down!

And Happy Mother's Day (officially yesterday, though it should be everyday) to this beautiful woman of elegance and strength. Mom, I owe you my life. Love you!

Special Flower Delivery to Mama  <333

*Photos by Tiffanie Ma