I was thoughtfully selected from over 40 applicants to take part in a seed-planting trip back in the Tankwa. I felt called to be there. Friends asked me, “What is calling you?” I couldn’t put it into words. I just knew. 

Being invited to join the project was confirmation of everything I experienced during my first journey in the Tankwa – a beautiful storm of synchronicities that was tangible proof of something I’ve always felt deep down: everything happens as it should.  

To have the opportunity to return to the land after the dust settled, to thank her for her wisdom, was an honour and a blessing. Being part of the year-long, heart-filled work that sustains the heart and life of AfrikaBurn showed me that the magic we experience during that week can indeed exist within the default world. It is within us all. Whether you have experienced the Tankwa or not… we can choose to become catalysts for the magic.  

“What is calling you?”  

I set out to work for AfrikaBurn before I even experienced my first Burn. Have you ever felt like you’ve found a home and family before you were part of it? I didn’t get the job. A couple of months later, I’m driving back to my camp on the dirt road the night before the gates officially open. I spot a woman walking on the road alone, crying. We stop the car and wrap her in our rainbow flags, telling her she is not alone and she is loved. Within minutes, we’re laughing around our campfire. She becomes my sister. A few weeks after Burn, while hanging at her apartment in Observatory, I ask her a question I usually hate asking, “So, what do you do for a job in the default world?” She responded, “I recently started as the volunteer coordinator for AfrikaBurn.”

There it was. Out of the 10,000 people, the very first sister I met had the job I’d wanted. Proof, once again, that everything unfolds exactly as it’s meant to. When she mentioned a new seed-planting project she was co-creating, I felt that similar pull. That’s where I’m meant to be. Looking back now, I think everyone who took part would probably say the same. 

The project was about far more than planting seeds. It was about giving and receiving love, to the land and to one another, with the intention that the energy would ripple outward into the rest of the world. I’m writing this now from Chicago, USA, and I still feel those ripples. Maybe, by reading this, you’ll naturally become part of them as well. 

The kindness started before we even reached the desert. My new sister rearranged plans so I could attend my friend’s graduation before joining the trip. That compassion led to another participant – someone I’d never met – to offer to drive his car separately with me. When we finally arrived, hours after everyone else, we found our tents already pitched in the small indoor area. Everyone who’d arrived first had placed their own tents outside in the winter cold… Was it really so? Burn kindness continuing after the dust had settled…The answer was yes.  

We played hard and worked harder. No matter how much silliness kept us laughing late into the night, each morning we were greeted with nourishing meals before dancing over to the vacant soil to dig our holes and plant our seeds. 

After our opening ceremony, where we took time to connect and honour the land and its history, our mission was revealed: dig 1,000 holes. “That’ll be easy, we’ll be done before lunch,” my new road-trip partner declared. Little did we know how large those holes needed to be. How much love we needed to give each one.  

The land teaches you exactly what you need to learn. You never know what will come up. For me, this time around, one of the lessons was about imposter syndrome. How did I, after my first Burn, deserve to be amongst these incredible, strong, community-focused humans who have mostly been a part of this community for years.. all led by a team of bad-ass women? Especially when I didn’t even know how to use a pick. 

Or rather… I didn’t know. Within five minutes, someone quietly showed me without needing to ask. Each one teach one. 

That’s the beauty of spaces where people are welcomed exactly as they authentically are. I knew my strengths. So, I became DJ Ila Water Fairy. I kept the music flowing so we could bust a move between shovel loads and fluttered around in my Unicorn hat making sure everyone stayed hydrated. 

Later, the Water Fairy received some water magic of her own. After five hours of digging, I walked off to the shower, mentally preparing myself for the upcoming cold plunge. Just as I had welcomed the cold water, the entire group appeared. Someone arrived carrying my favourite pink mug filled with wine, another with a bar of soap and a scalp massage, and the rest began troubleshooting the hot water. We watched the sun disappear behind the magical mountains while laughing and singing through one of the best showers of my life.

The love didn’t end there… I shared my deep connection to one of the remaining artworks on the Binnekring. Within an hour, we were piled in the back of a bakkie, driving out beneath a sky full of stars to dance beside the art. I felt like I was living inside a dream.  

Again and again, I was reminded that this is what humanity looks like. This kindness, where you expect nothing in return, is what fuels my hope and love for life.  

When I made mistakes, I was met with loving, gentle feedback, instead of judgment. When it was time to leave, we spent a morning ensuring we left no trace (other than the seeds we’d planted).  

The purpose of the trip was to give to the land… and somehow, every one of us left more nourished than when we arrived. More excited to spread the gifts the land provides to the default world.  

Although we didn’t dig 1,000 holes, I don’t think of those holes as left undone. I think of them as reminders that nothing is ever finished. Every moment of connection. Every act of gifting. Every lesson shared. Every stranger wrapped in a rainbow flag. Every seed planted – in the ground or in another person’s heart – continues to ripple outward. 

… And maybe those 864 holes will continue to be planted at the next eco trip.

Words: Ilana Mack

The re-greening of Quaggafontein with indigenous species by volunteers is an example of how Dust Devil support helps to keep the spirit of the burn alive beyond the Binnekring. Through a small monthly donation, you can help invent the world anew through wild creativity and social upliftment projects that grow our community by becoming a Dust Devil. 

Ready to make the circle bigger and set sparks alight? Become a Dust Devil!