Salma’s Story

Growing up as an immigrant in Canada, I didn't have a lot of experience exploring or learning in the outdoors. My parents spoke English as a second language and didn't always have the vocabulary for flora or the environment. Spaces for outdoor learning often felt dominated by white folks who already had existing knowledge. Even as a teenager and young adult, I felt that I had fallen behind and this feeling morphed into a disdain for the outdoors. I was scared of bugs, I didn't like getting dirty, and when I thought of places where I built community, I always thought of indoor spaces. 

However, my wife grew up witnessing her mother tending to her garden, her family grew their own food and went on camping trips. She acquired outdoor skills and began to associate the outdoors with connection and learning. So, it's no surprise that when we moved to the Harris Green area, she put us on the waitlist for a plot at the Yates Street Community Garden. 

When we first got our plot, I felt totally out of my element. I didn't know what I was doing and I was scared of making mistakes. Now looking back, spending time in the garden was one of my favourite activities of the year. For the first time ever, I grew food and cooked with it! Tomatoes, carrots, garlic - some of my favourite ingredients to cook with - my wife and I planted, tended to, harvested, and then cooked into our meals. I learned how to properly clean different vegetables after harvest (after many mistakes - note: don't soak your garlic) and how to maximize all parts of the vegetable (like making carrot-top pesto). 

I still was terrified when I would see spiders or wasps in the garden but I stopped associating the space with only those feelings of fear. Instead, I brought my friends and family in to show them my plot and to sit in the sunshine. I attended community events like Blossom Your Pride, Watercolour Workshops, and Naloxone Trainings. I became friends with my plot-neighbours and we would water each others gardens when we were out of town. I started to think of the garden as a space for connection and learning. And as we shift into the colder seasons, I'm already thinking ahead to next spring and how I might set-up my plot differently!

Living downtown, I am surrounded by car traffic, construction sites, and apartment buildings. Having the Yates Street Community Garden in the heart of this urban neighbourhood has brought me so much light and joy. I think it's absolutely essential to our neighbourhood and has so much to offer to the community.