(Imperatriz) – The Province of Our Lady of Aparecida is pleased to share one of its initiatives in this article: the project “My Yard Is Bigger Than the World!”
For two years, the Province of Nossa Senhora Aparecida has been carrying out the project “Meu quintal maior do que o mundo” in Imperatriz, in the state of Maranhão, in the north-eastern region of Brazil, an initiative dedicated to women and focused on family farming and the promotion of life.
In collaboration with ISPN – the Institute of Society, Population and Nature, the Canossian Mothers welcome around 20 women, with the aim of supporting them through family farming, a very strong sector in the Maranhão region. The motto “Women who sow, sowing Life” inspires them to ensure that all their efforts in cultivation are not aimed only at financial gain, but above all at helping them to develop their gifts further, get to know themselves and one another better, and thus build mutual support among themselves.
To make this possible, the women taking part are expected to attend our house three times a week, in the so-called “Life Space”, where they attend classes led by Professor Juan and are accompanied by one of our sisters, Sister Eugênia. She takes part in every session and also shares her knowledge and gifts through this service. During the classes, they learn in theory how to grow crops and the care needed for each plant, vegetable, fruit, and so on. Once the theory is complete, they are invited to put it into practice. The project has a large area set aside for the vegetable garden, and so the women begin planting, especially vegetables that can later be sold. In addition, the professor and the sister visit the women’s home gardens to offer guidance on what they can plant at home for future income generation. The women who completed the course in 2025 are still visited too, so that they continue to feel supported and valued in their endeavours.
This is how life is being sown in this small yet vast space of the world. Here, the women recognise that the great gift is the nature God gives us, and that their lives are precious and must be respected, cared for, loved and valued.
