Save 50 Youth with Regenerative Agriculture

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You subscribed to email updates from Save 45 Vulnerable Youth through Organic Farming by The Learning Farm, a project on GlobalGiving. Here's the unedited update from the field:

My life after TLF: A Testimony From Our Volunteer

My name is Kristine and I had the privilege of volunteering at TLF for two weeks, teaching Yoga and Pilates every morning, and dance and theatre workshops in the afternoons. I am Norwegian, currently living in Madrid, Spain. At the moment I´m working as a dancer in a musical theatre production called the Lion King.

I think it´s safe to say that my day to day world is very different from the day to day life at TLF. But that´s not just because of the obvious…

My first week back home, I remember feeling embarrassed. Of the western values, the pointless consumerism, but more than anything, the lack of compassion between people. In my theatre for example, it´s all about the latest IPhone, looking amazing to the outside world, and having a million followers on Instagram.

At TLF, the students’ phones were also important (especially when they got them back in the afternoon after a hard day´s work!), and who doesn’t like having a nice outfit or dressing up? Also, Facebook is huge and everyone wants to be friends and put their photos up.

So yes, there´s similarity, although the setting is different. But there’s still a fundamental difference between these two worlds, that goes beyond the fact that I work with make-up and costumes, and that TLF works with soil and seeds.

I can talk to you about the hard work and good humor of the TLF students and staff, and the openness and willingness to make you feel welcome, and to learn new things.

But what struck me the most, is how I found an amazing social interaction, based on witty and almost innocent self-humor. Respect without even questioning why. And more than anything, the tolerance between the different religions.

Nowadays, this is a very current issue, always in the news and being talked about. I wish I could take TLF with me and show it to the world as an example of how to nurture good, healthy relationships and just go back to the basics; work hard and be nice. In the end, we are all the same, human beings just trying to get along, make life work, and be as happy as possible in the process.

I can´t praise enough the work that´s being done at TLF, the program, the amazing staff, the students, the values being taught, the importance of a program encouraging organic farming. I´m so grateful for all my experiences at the farm, I learnt so much from everyone, everything and even myself.

Thanks TLF, and keep up the good work! :)