22 people ran 5 km and 10 km to garden and make new growing space

The seasons are a-changing, and tonight was the first Tuesday night run we set off before nightfall, whilst it was still light. So it seemed appropriate to be tackling two tasks. We split into groups. One ran 5k to help an elderly Hackney resident chop down overgrown bushes, the other group ran 10k to Dalston to continue the creation of Secret Seed's rooftop garden.

There was still a ton of compost to be moved from the ground floor car park to the top floor garden. Amy was there to meet us, eager as ever, armed with shovels, wheelbarrows and... Builders Bags! These huge, square sacks can hold up to 1000kg of weight. Not intimidated at all, we got stuck right in.

Four to a sack, we filled each one as full as possible before carrying it over to the back of the building. There, we were told a rooftop wrench existed to crane it up to the top - a lot easier than four GoodGymers deftly lugging each one up a few flights of stairs, I’m sure! But, we shall have to wait & see about the rooftop crane next week, I’m afraid. We only had time to manage filling the sacks and to move the compost. Secret Seed Society sure do have a lot of compost to shift - This garden is going to be Gorgeous!

Along with moving the compost to where it is needed – on the plants, not on the cars – a few of us also moved some of the bedding plants, growing in their little portable bedding trays, over to the sunny side of the ground floor garden, to give the plants the best light. We also moved a few more over to just outside the window of a neighbouring office; something they had requested to improve their view! It felt great to know that the work we do has a knock-on effect such as this, and that it is possible to put a smile on someone’s face through simply uniting and working together for the benefit of the whole community. This way, the smile travels on and on!

Then for the 5k return run back to base at Coffee is my Cup of Tea. We maintained a steady pace and stuck together as a group, as always, taking care of each other and promoting our work through the streets of Hackney, where we’re becoming more & more familiar and recognised every week. Lots of people ask who we are and one of us will always stop for a quick chat to let people know what the GoodGym is all about & where to find us, before jogging on and catching up with the rest of the group.

Seeing new faces every week is just brilliant – one can never have too many magnificent minds to talk to on the stretch-out & the warm-down at the end of each run!

Andreana