Desert Gardens

Have you ever started a garden in a dessert?

About two months ago a PEP community in Khipro received 3 hand pumps for their village as a part of our Community Led Total Sanitation efforts. Before the village had hand pumps, the women would have to walk for hours in the hot sun carrying gallons of water on their heads. However, because water now no longer takes so long to access, many of the women find themselves with more time on their hands. One of the reasons some people mention for not sending their daughters to school is that the women they need their help out at home. In addition to improving health, we’re hoping that decreasing the work for the women by building hand pumps will also give their daughters the time they need to go to school.

This particular community realized what a precious gift water was. When someone pumps the water, sometimes the bucket is overfilled or too much water comes out too fast. The villagers wanted to make sure they used this precious resource well. They used their creativity and insight with the excess water and used it to begin a vegetable garden! In dry desert areas, like so many parts of Sindh, it is very difficult to grow vegetables with such little water. Furthermore, this community (like many that PEP works in) is also extremely isolated and buying weekly vegetables is an expensive burden. By building a hand pump, the community is able to not only have clean drinking water closer, but to increase their families’ health and nutrition as well.

What if we each saw our own resources like this community does? What if we took stock of all of our blessings, gifts, and talents and made the most of them? I believe that our gardens and lives would be filled with blossoms and blooms of hope and promise. Give more communities a chance to show off their creativity and sponsor a hand pump today!

What resources do you have to share? How can you use your time, gifts, and abilities more efficiently to create a positive impact on the world around you?