Betho was his name, a man in his sixties with the typical appearances that accompanied the rugged life in the remote Miskito communities on the east coast of Nicaragua. Betho was not a native Spanish speaker, this meant our conversation was somewhat stilted, but we could still communicate. I learned about his family, his life in the community and the challenges they faced with hurricanes, floods and chronic food shortages at certain times of the year. This was going to change, however, as he referenced the sack of corn. They had food to eat now while they waited for the next planting season. The corn was part of his share of a field that was planted with Gerardo, who I will introduce in the next paragraph. With that he threw his sack of corn into his dug out canoe and we parted ways.
Betho was his name, a man in his sixties with the typical appearances that accompanied the rugged life in the remote Miskito communities on the east coast of Nicaragua. Betho was not a native Spanish speaker, this meant our conversation was somewhat stilted, but we could still communicate. I learned about his family, his life in the community and the challenges they faced with hurricanes, floods and chronic food shortages at certain times of the year. This was going to change, however, as he referenced the sack of corn. They had food to eat now while they waited for the next planting season. The corn was part of his share of a field that was planted with Gerardo, who I will introduce in the next paragraph. With that he threw his sack of corn into his dug out canoe and we parted ways.
Earlier that day we had visited one of the lead farmers in our agriculture program. Gerardo appeared to be doing everything well. He was experimenting with several new crops that could be grown between the two annual growing seasons. Gerardo also was improving the fertility of the soil with legume crops and protecting the soil from erosion typically caused by the torrential rain storms. In addition, Gerardo was storing his crops using techniques he has learned that prevent post-harvest losses due to rodents and insect damage. A vegetable garden beside the house was a new component in a culture where vegetables are typically not cultivated. In a conversation with Gerardo and his wife, clearly their family is much more ‘food secure’ than two years earlier when Gerardo entered the program. The day we visited, they were shelling corn and drying rice in their simple one room home. The traditional ‘food gap’ of 4-5 months of the year (time where there is little or no food available) was closing for their family.
An important part of our program design is not just to work with the more innovative farmers but also contributing to a positive impact on ‘food security’ at the whole community level. Some of this is ‘built’ into the program since one of the requirements for Gerardo’s participation is that he has to share his knowledge and seed stock as he mentors at least two other farmers. But we are also interested in knowing how other farmers are adopting new ways of farming by seeing the examples of innovative farmers like Gerardo. Betho was one of the latter, and despite his age he was curious to learn how to grow a crop in the off season. Gerardo invited him to plant alongside of him to learn a new way of farming. That day Betho took home the ‘fruit’ of his work.
Please Pray
Please pray for this food security program I am sharing with you. We are in the process of renewing the funding for this program with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank (CFGB). The proposal we submitted will guarantee funding for four more years and open the program up to 38 communities with 2,335 farmers. I have shared with you in previous newsletters the complexity of this work. The daunting logistics, the menace of drug trafficking, the recent surge of HIV Aids and the prevalence of a fatalistic worldview often are a source of frustration. And yet we are sure that God has led us to this far corner of Nicaragua to proclaim his sovereignty and help build up this indigenous group that has a history of being neglected and exploited. Also pray for the staff that are committed to share their skills and testimonies as they implement this program.
