Nigh Ox Newsletter

October 2001

Interns Share Their Experience at Tillers

Cathy Dernay writes: I started my internship at Tillers in February and learned the chore routine as the snow flew around me. Now as my internship ends, the brilliant colors of fall send me on my way. This has been an exciting season filled with exploration and learning. This is my third internship on a farm, but my first experience with animal power. I can vividly remember my fear of Lewis' huge head and sidelong glance the first time I climbed into the oxen's stall to lay down their bedding. I remember thinking, 'What am I getting myself into?' Well, what I was getting into was a rewarding season, learning not only about animal traction and our rural farm heritage but also about community. I have been inspired by the volunteers' and students' commitment and enthusiasm for Tillers' mission. I have met so many fascinating people from around the world, all passionate about agriculture in one way or another. I feel lucky to have had this opportunity to connect with such interesting people and feel a sense of community that is often lacking in our modern society.

Martin Erhardt writes: Someone once told me that they loved school because it was their ticket off the farm. Now it's my turn to say that I love the farm because it was my ticket out of school! Coming from the relatively sterile environment of a university chemistry lab, it's been a great experience for me to work outside, to learn new (new to me, at least!) skills like animal traction, blacksmithing, timber framing, beekeeping, pasture management, and, of course, newsletter folding J. Best of all has been the opportunity to meet and work with great people from varied walks of life - you've helped to make my internship a wonderful experience! This spring, I'll complete my roundtrip ticket back to school and start teaching chemistry at Valparaiso University in Indiana, where I hope to recruit more people for the Tillers' cause - preserving our rural heritage and promoting sustainable agriculture to meet the needs of people the world over.

Moses Bahati Kisamo (from TANZANIA, EAST AFRICA) writes: I joined Tillers International in April 2001 as an intern through MESA, a not for profit organization based in California. Being a farmer from a developing country where farming is still entirely done by hand hoes, I was very impressed to learn tremendous changes that can be brought about in farming by the introduction of animal power. I learned about driving oxen, plowing with them both with walking and sitting plows, logging and pulling. Oxen are really wonderful. After eight months of working with oxen I am obsessed with the idea of having my own team(s) immediately as I go back home. Other valuable things I learned include blacksmithing, Which empowers the farmer to forge needed tools in farming industry, and woodworking, which enables the farmer to build yokes, bows, and construct barns for both produce and animals. I believe that the skills acquired will not only change my life but also the community around me back home. I feel that I owe Tillers and supporters a lifetime of thanks for making it possible that American rural heritage is to be shared with the rest of the world.

Long live Tillers, long live America.