A day at Oxbow Farm with the Congolese Integration Network

Oxbow Farm, Carnation WA

On October 4, The Nature Project brought teens from the Congolese Integration Network to Oxbow Farm for a full day of connection, culture, and nature. The day began in the greenhouse with TNP volunteer Angeline Corpuz leading the group in breathwork and mindset work, exploring how we talk to ourselves and setting intentions for the day. From there, the teens worked with Chef Sudeepa Prakesh to harvest vegetables and cook vegetarian curries, sharing a meal alongside TNP athletes who opened up about their own heritage, food traditions, and what culture means to them. In the orchard, everyone took part in a practice of releasing what's not serving them anymore, writing it on an apple and launching it with a slingshot, full of laughter and meaning. The day was rooted in the simple power of being in nature together, quiet and present, connected to the land, to each other, and to who they are. "Being out there in the quiet, cooking together, laughing in the orchard — you remember who you are. That's not something you forget."

TNP athletes joined the table and opened up, sharing their own stories of food, shared meals, and the traditions that shaped them. They reflected on their heritage, the dishes that carry memory, and what it means to hold onto that sense of identity wherever life takes you. Their honesty and openness made space for the teens to see themselves in those stories too.

In the orchard, the group harvested apples and took part in a meaningful ritual: each person wrote on an apple something they no longer wanted to carry, something to release, and launched it with the big slingshot. Stress, sadness, fear were written in bold sharpie on the apples and launched far into the field. There were plenty of giggles and laughs, but the intention behind it was real.

Being out in nature, in the quiet and the peace, gave everyone space to connect: with the land, with each other, and with their own culture. That sense of belonging and rootedness was at the heart of the day.