This summer, I gardened for the first time.
Before you ask, I’m not referring to TikTok’s favorite pseudonym for smoking marijuana. I’m talking about hands in the dirt, sun beating down on the back of my neck, harvesting produce … that type of gardening.
Like many rising seniors, I opted for a South Bend summer and lived in my off-campus townhouse with one of my roommates. Scavenging for a job, I ultimately landed a position as an intern at a local nonprofit called Unity Gardens, a free-pick garden open to the public with a goal to improve community building and community health.
Going into this experience, I was told and therefore assumed my daily to-do list would consist of planning and executing events, and while that was a sector of my job, it didn’t end up being what I did majority of the time. On the very first day, prior to my orientation, I spent the whole morning weeding, reseeding and wheelbarrowing soil back and forth with a boatload of volunteers and coworkers I had yet to formally meet. It was an interesting first impression to say the least.
Everyday, I was getting a full body workout by accomplishing what I found to be such complicated tasks. I felt overwhelmed and exhausted every evening, but over time I slowly but surely began to spend more time doing the things I was good at such as watering plants, assisting people pick their food and even getting to work a booth at the South Bend Farmers Market (fun fact: I really love farmers markets).
I felt like a sponge learning so much about how to garden properly and the importance of locally grown food. Harvesting produce one day and selling it to customers the next was so cool and inspirational. I mean who knew how embarrassingly excited I’d get over watching the carrots I planted grow. It wasn’t by any means something I anticipated happening, but nonetheless it did.
The opportunity I had to work for Unity Gardens couldn’t have come at a better time. Now that I no longer have a meal plan and am cooking for myself, I am grateful for the insight I received on how food is grown and sourced. Every Trader Joe’s run, I am scanning the ingredient lists and looking for some exciting recipe to make next, even though most nights I will admit to cooking up pasta. My gardening experience this summer was the first but most definitely not the last. I wish I had the outdoor space for a garden, but for now, maybe some house plants will do the trick.
Out of all things, I didn’t expect my summer internship to be my favorite part of the summer, but I am so glad that was the case and am grateful to have discovered a love for something new whilst also getting to experience South Bend outside the parameters of the tri-campus community.
Moira Quinn is a senior at Saint Mary's College studying communication. When she isn't writing for The Observer, she can be found with friends, watching a good romantic comedy or missing her basset hound. You can contact Moira at mquinn02@saintmarys.edu.
