Coconut

Our lives seem to be made up of boxes. We wake up in a box called our bedrooms. We then step into the living room, the bathroom, kitchen, dining room - all shaped like boxes. When we go to the office or to the shops, it is like walking from one box to another.

And we have moving boxes, otherwise known as cars. Boxes created to provide a form of shelter/protection. But where do our bodies feel most at comfort?

Personally, I am most at ease when I am outdoors. When I can breathe in fresh air and when I am surrounded by greenery.

That might be the reason why my parents are always in the veggie patch when they get the chance. Why my dad is there with the "cangkul" [garden hoe] early in the morning. Not just so he can gross me out with a container full of earthworms. 

I have heard, however, that worm farms are a great source of fertilisers.

The november rain greets a batch of newly planted corn

If you get the chance, have yourself a coconut drink... fresh. My sister Alice says that the best time to pick coconuts is in the morning. That is when they are at their sweetest.

 

My mum says that coconut water is good for fevers. It helps to cool down the body. And if a new born baby is "yellow" or jaundice, to bathe the baby in coconut water. Use about five coconuts each time - for about three to four days.

Now there are about six coconuts sitting on the kitchen floor right now. I indulged in one (okay, maybe two) green coconuts yesterday. The juice was sweet and fragrant, the white flesh easy to scrape off with a spoon and it was delicious. Think I will have another one now.

Till next time, happy chillaxing!

Jambu

Ma: "Go look, look at the rabbits in the backyard"

My initial thoughts were... "What? We have rabbits??"

So I put my sandals on and head to the back of the house to discover two huuuuge pens filled with rabbits.

But what caught my attention was the row of corn planted right in front of the pens. Corn!?

Then my mom points out to me that the plants that are grown beside the corn are good for people who have heart problems.

We have plants that heal??

And that was when I thought, I have to tell the world about this!

To me, being sustainable is all about being green. To be an individual as opposed to being a mass consumer. It is an initiative to halving the grocery spend.

But to my parents, this whole idea of growing one's own food is only practical. It is something that is done, simply because it can be done.

Today's produce is "shui weng". Known in English as wax apple. But my parents call it "jambu", the Malay version. The jambu tree was planted back in 2002, at a young height of 80cm.

My mum says that when the fruit is at about two weeks old, it needs to be wrapped up in plastic to prevent worms from getting into it.

And today, we have a basket full of jambu. My mum is planning to give them away to her friends and to the neighbours.

I told my mum that I was going to blog about... let's call it, "the farm"... and she was very happy to hear it. She even offered to answer any queries about the farm if anyone has any.

You can call her... Auntie Helen

That is ma with her home grown potatoes.

Right, I better go now. Ma just cooked herbal duck and a belacan dish.

Till next time, happy planting!