Little Rose Centre // N'KlaKla

“We come from different cultures and think very differently. Just by being here, you are changing the way we think and we are changing the way you think. It’s a very cool thing, you know. I think together we can find some new ideas.”

Our first day at the center was spent getting a feel for all of the different programs and responsibilities at Little Rose. From helping tiny humans learn how to write the letter “O” in the classroom to seeing how the women in the kitchen cook hundreds of dishes to learning how to make earrings out of empty, colorful espresso cups – the staff wanted us to fundamentally understand all of the work that went into keeping the place up and running.

That evening, we sat down with N’KlaKla and Nk to brainstorm the projects Em and I would be helping out with. Before we got into it, N’KlaKla took a second to express the quote above and their excitement for what could come out of our work for the next couple of weeks. It was pretty incredible how collaborative they wanted the whole process to be. There was endless flexibility with how we could shape these projects and a lot of ambiguity to form into something concrete and innovative. Most of all, I appreciated the recognition of how our backgrounds, conditioning, and education created a diversity of thought in the room that had the potential to be really empowering.

The room became a think tank of dozens of ideas, big and small, of how we could do something impactful with our limited time there. We asked dozens of questions, took notes, and felt ourselves go into “case comp mode” as we tried to understand the issues that they saw at Little Rose. Being cautious to carefully listen and not to superimpose my ideas over their understanding of their issues was a constant thought on my mind; is what I’m suggesting to help with relevant? Is it sustainable? Is it what they need? Does it respect their culture?

N’KlaKla in particular is proudly a lifelong learner. With each major roadblock in his life that he has told me stories about, he refers to each as a learning experience and a chance to become a stronger person. He is lighthearted in any situation, even after working two jobs and getting only two hours of sleep one night. He finds a way to make even the most mundane things, like carrying dozens of boxes up to a storage room, into a game of catch or dancing or rapping along the way. His vibrancy is overwhelmingly people-centric; connecting with and bringing energy to other people is his highest priority.