On the first day of the year, Japanese people celebrate this major holiday by going for Hatsumōde, the first shrine visit of the year, where they pray for health and happiness, and obtain new amulets while cremating old ones. Filipinos start the year off right by wearing polka dots or any circular motifs, keeping coins in their pockets, and eating round-shaped food for abundance as they believe the more circles, the more coins or money they will obtain in the new year. While in Mexico, many sweep their houses to get rid of bad energy and carry suitcases around their homes to attract travel opportunities.
Here’s a prompt: What’s your go-to way of spending the new year? Who would you spend it with? Personally, two main ingredients would make my New Year’s Day recipe complete— serving the community and amazing company!
On the 1st of January this year, I was joined by four other friends-cum-colleagues from Charisma Movement’s Research and Advocacy Department to a volunteering session at Kebun Kebun Bangsar. It is not just any kebun (farm), it is a 2.5-acre urban community vegetable farm nestled within the bustling city of Kuala Lumpur, which started as a political movement in 2013 but has blossomed into something much more. Their main pillars include 1) connecting permaculture and biophilia for people to learn about sustainable urban farming and coexist with nature, 2) cultivating the spirit of giving which they produce and donate fresh vegetables to underserved communities, 3) using idle land creatively and challenging the traditional land use planning system, and 4) advocating nature-based solutions for climate mitigation and adaptation.
For us city kids who grew up in privileged times where we wouldn’t need to be tasked to help our parents at a farm or grow our own food out of necessity, getting our hands dirty and cultivating green fingers might be a rare and foreign activity. Despite our rusty gardening skills, we were in charge of helping with one of the crucial aspects of their urban farm—the compost, which requires manual turning every week. Leading the session was Yuka, a passionate 13-year-old volunteer who has been helping out consistently since 2022. Yuka enlightened us on the composting process: preparing, layering, turning, sieving, and lastly storing, with the full process taking around 4 weeks to complete.
We were in charge of the first three steps of composting and despite the supposed sequential nature of the process, we worked on these three steps simultaneously. One of us was in charge of “turning” the compost from the first bin to the second bin using a hoe, which involves mixing and aerating the pile to increase microbial activity. The compost is left to decompose for one week before being turned again, and this process repeats until the compost reaches the fourth and final bin. For the layering process, another person used a pitchfork to lift green and brown materials alternately into the emptied first bin to ensure the appropriate balance of nitrogen and carbon.
To prepare the compost materials, we were given machetes or axes to chop thick and fibrous green materials into smaller sections, increasing the surface area and allowing microbes to decompose them faster. We worked diligently under the refreshing morning sun until we successfully turned the compost into the second bin and filled up the first bin with all the green and brown materials we had gathered. As a reward, we were allowed to pluck some coconuts to indulge in its invigorating elixir and taste some amazing home-cooked Black Face General Plant tea.
Apart from the manual labour, we were given a simple tour of the farm and engaged in a session with Joanne, the chairperson of Kebun Kebun Bangsar, to learn more about the farm's history and operations. We also chatted about the presence of animals here, which serves as a great way for kids and adults alike to experience interacting with animals other than visiting a petting zoo.
We actually visited the farm 2 weeks before our volunteering session for a “site visit” and fell in love with how the equable flora was adorned by the liveliness of the fauna, juxtaposed against the city’s skyline. The animals range from ruminants like sheep and cattle to fowls like peacocks and turkeys, all gifted by people and maintained there at the farm to live restful days without the shackles of labour. We also bridged the distance with the animals by feeding them pellets, immersing ourselves in some quiet moments of unspoken connection.
My experiences on this farm have been nothing short of terrific. There is something meditative about hands-on work—it demands deep concentration, syncing limb coordination with the tool at hand, pulling me into a trance-like zen state. I am truly honoured to have the serendipitous opportunity to explore and volunteer at places like Kebun Kebun Bangsar. And after a night of dazzling fireworks and a sentimental finale of the previous year, what would one yearn for in the new year? Whether it is to chase feelings of fulfilment to kickstart the new year or pursue a tranquil nature retreat, Kebun Kebun Bangsar undoubtedly offers something for everyone, capturing the hearts of all who visit.
By
Yu Qi,
Journalist,
Charisma Movement 24/25.
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