The students have just returned from their holiday, well-rested and excited for the new semester. What better way to spend that energy than channeling it towards celebrating the legacy of the father of our nation, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, on International Mandela Day? In his autobiography, Mandela writes about keeping a garden and draws many correlations between it and leadership.
“Like the gardener, a leader must take responsibility for what he cultivates; he must mind his work, try to repel enemies, preserve what can be preserved, and eliminate what cannot succeed.” -Nelson Mandela
After a brief presentation in the hall, our students were divided into groups, each with a different role. Two groups were stationed at our vegetable garden, another two at our herb garden, and one final group was tasked with putting together hampers for our food drive. The students and some staff members were off to their respective stations, contributing 67 minutes of their time.
The purpose of the vegetable and herb garden is to contribute fresh produce to our campus kitchen and to give a new purpose to the organic waste generated on campus. Through our collective action, we can teach our students about sustainability. Dr. Matthys Strydom gave meaningful input by suggesting we attempt a companion plant planting method, highlighting strength in diversity. The food drive was successful too; our students and staff collectively contributed more than 120 cans of vegetables, divided among 11 hampers we intend to give to underprivileged families.
All in all, Mandela Day was very successful, and the collective time our campus put in exceeds that of an individual’s typical work week. What an honor it is to sacrifice just 67 minutes of our day to commemorate Madiba and play a small yet significant role in a now-global movement.
Enkosi tata, Madiba!
