Rox Garden Day

On Saturday, March 21st I volunteered at the Memphis Rox community garden from 10am to 12pm. I helped out with some tasks to clean up the garden. I worked with the lady there to clear the old vines off of the fence so that it can be repaired, and then helped the others clean out dirt and weeds from old bricks so that they can be repurposed. The mission statement of the Memphis Rox Climbing + Community is as follows: “Memphis Rox brings rehabilitation, healing and a renewed sense of hope to challenged communities by providing a climbing facility and programs that foster relationships across cultural, racial, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. We exclude no one – regardless of ability to pay”.
One thing I learned about myself doing this is that I love challenging tasks because they're more rewarding than simpler ones. Working on the bricks was slightly boring to me but working on the fence was exciting and felt productive. Another thing I learned about myself is that whenever people ask me questions about what school I go to, where I’m from, what I’m studying, etc, I openly tell them a little bit about me but I don’t think to ask the same thing to those people in that moment. I realized later that I didn’t get to know those people that asked me questions when I had an opportunity. In the future, especially when I want to network, I want to get better at getting to know other new people I meet and build connections. It’s also a good safety precaution if I feel like the person asking me questions is sketchy.
I learned a lot about others doing this because the group that was there working on the garden was a mix of different age groups, including some adults, a couple high school and college kids, and one 7th grader. It was interesting being around the 7th grader because I’ve only really been around adults here at college, so I forgot how younger kids think and behave differently than us. It seems like they love being judgy; they think it’s funny and makes them more cool. I remember when I was in middle school judgement of others mattered a whole lot more to me than it does now, so it makes sense to me. They also love lingering on topics they find funny. When I finished working on the fence, I went to help the others clean out bricks and I was listening to this 7th grade boy talk to two of the highschoolers and I thought to myself how annoying it would be to be around kids this young all the time. I also wasn’t annoyed in the moment though because it just expanded my perspective on the difference between me and age groups younger than me. As I get older I forget that there are more and more people who are younger than me, and I forget what being that age is like. It was nice being around a younger age group for a little bit to refresh my perspective on age, growth, and maturity.
What I enjoyed most about doing this service was working on getting all the thick vines off of the fence. It was so engaging working as a team and figuring out how to get them off and it was so rewarding when we actually managed to get them off.
Doing this work was really helpful because we got a significant amount of the fence cleared so that it can be repaired sooner. Also, the clearing out of the bricks helped them be able to repurpose them for new raised beds. The goal of this garden work is to get it back into condition to be used again after being left alone for a couple years, and the product of what’s successfully grown can be made available to the local community.
I definitely plan to volunteer to do more garden work. I love working with plants and I think that making good produce available for communities that struggle to access healthy food is extremely underrated.

awrsome

Volunteering at Memphis Rox Garden Day challenged my problem-solving abilities by requiring me to develop efficient methods for clearing debris and thick brush from the fences and grounds. This service deepened my understanding of social issues by showing me that lasting community success requires both collective effort and individual perseverance. I worked as part of a collaborative team alongside a 33-year-old PhD and two high school seniors; this team dynamic impacted me by making the labor-intensive work feel more manageable and engaging through our shared conversation. My efforts contributed directly to the organization’s mission of restoring the garden to a vibrant, functional space for the neighborhood. Reflecting on the day, I would change nothing about my approach, as I felt fully committed to the tasks and the people involved.