Far far away
Our editor's 19-year-old son sends notes from an
Argentinian farm

By RAVI DYKEMA & KRYN DYKEMA

In my Nov-Dec editorial I told you that my two kids had just left for separate 6-month-long journeys in Central and South America, working on organic farms and traveling. Their letters home are such a wonderful distraction from winter and recession and ordinariness that I want to share some excerpts of my 19-year-old son Kryn’s writings. His birthday is tomorrow and this editorial is his present! He reminds me of the kind of zest for life and courage that comes with youth (and challenging times). May your springtime find you, too, safe from foxes and nourished by rain, sun and good food.
– RD

Kryn Dykema, writing from El Bolson, Argentina, about his experiences on an organic farm:

“So far I’ve learned about prepping soil and just about dirt. I bust my ass many hours in the sun blistering my hands and callusing them over on grunjing tasks that just make your mind scream and your arms bulge with veins. And I get a new dirt shirt daily. My fro is like a sandbox.

Then we have lunch, generally grain and vegetable. Bread is pretty much a daily thing. I make good bread. Beerta from Germany’s bread tastes like curry powder and is really salty. When she’s here she like takes over cooking but complains that she only does it because she gets hungry and no one cooks until real late.

One of our chickens, Big Mamma, the head chicken, got nailed by a fox or something and it took a lot of the flesh off her head. We tried to fix her up but she got worse so we killed her. Her meat and everything’s in a pot and needs another cooking tonight. But her juice is really good for rice and stuff. She’s really tough and needs lots of cooking but she’ll be edible at some point. Rest in peace.

I’m speaking tons of Spanish of course with all the community folks who are here all the time: meals are always for 7 or 8 people and they like food cooked in a certain way. I know I’m a good cook and I wish they would just let the cook cook and I’m sure they would like it.

I think if I don’t figure out how to be one with myself and learn to live in my atman (He’s reading the Bhagavad Gita; “atman” is one’s true self) instead of on worldly feelings and pleasures and things, I will have to leave early. Some days though I feel great like walking here to town, and this morning I think I am getting somewhere.

I like Alex (owner of the farm) a lot. We have fun. We sing and laugh and I’m funny and he’s funny and we always have success in the kitchen and we eat tons of food and it tastes good. All this food is going into my muscles doing things that I would get 100 dollars a day for at home.

I’m sneak charging my camera at this Internet cafe where I’m writing to you. I unplugged the computer next to me. I’m kind of scared. I hope I don’t get caught. Anyways we came here for ice cream so I’m gonna go do that. It’s like really really good here. Bye.”