TCRs in the Wild: Gillian

Written by Gillian Brouwer, Tatalu Conservation Resident

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One of my prayers as I started off my time in the Tatalu Conservation Residency (TCR) program at A Rocha was that I might more so seek to serve than seek to be served. It turned out that there were many opportunities for me to serve, including the removal of invasive Himalayan blackberries from habitat restoration areas. Removing the invasive blackberries provides space for native plants to grow and eventually shade out any future invasive blackberry growth. This work transforms landscapes dominated by invasive blackberries into habitats for a diversity of species.

On my first Saturday here, it rained all day while we were removing blackberries and I returned home soaked, muddy, scratched and unsure of the difference between native and invasive blackberry plants. It was certainly not the kind of experience I had come to A Rocha for, and yet the invasives removal continued every Saturday and even some weekdays. Why was I being made to do this?

As I was listening to a podcast on a walk in the paths around A Rocha, the idea was presented to me that programs like A Rocha’s Tatalu Conservation Residency program are not meant to primarily benefit the participant, rather they are meant to shape the participant into someone who benefits their communities. It clicked in my mind that the blackberry removal was an opportunity for my initial prayer; it was an opportunity to serve rather than to be served.

So I returned to the work of removing blackberries the next Saturday with the song “This is My Father’s World” in my head, remembering that I am called to serve with joy. I was content with the task assigned to me where earlier I had been resentful that I was not doing something more exciting. Although my attitude in this work is still not always joyful, I approach it as an opportunity to follow Christ’s model of servanthood. I trust and hope that as I weed these invasive plants from the land, the selfish desires of my heart are slowly being removed to make space for desires to love the people and places around me.