“I have always loved being around plants,” says 13-year-old Grace de Souza, smiling as she speaks about the garden outside her home in Moira, Goa. “Even if I am tired or bored, if I go outside and water the plants, I feel peaceful again. I like doing things with my hands. I like helping my mother. I also like making things that are natural and good for people.”

It is the kind of response that does not sound rehearsed. She speaks slowly, thoughtfully, as though she has never really stopped to think about how unusual her summer holidays have become.

Outside her home, trays of moringa leaves lie drying under the sun. Now and then, she walks over to check them, turning the leaves gently with her hands so they dry evenly. By evening, the leaves will be brought inside for shade drying. A few days later, they will be ground into a fine green powder, packed neatly into small packets, and sold to customers across Goa.

For most teenagers, summer holidays are a break from routine. For her, they have become something else entirely.

Since 1 May 2026, the Class 9 student from St Mary’s Convent High School in Mapusa has been making moringa powder using leaves harvested from the trees growing in her family garden. In just over a month, she has sold around 20 packets and earned close to Rs 3,000.

But inside the de Souza household, nobody speaks about the money first. Instead, they speak about effort and responsibility. About learning to value work done slowly and carefully.

“This was completely her idea,” says her mother, Maria de Mello (42). “One day she just said she wanted to make moringa powder for people who don’t have moringa trees at home. I was honestly very touched listening to her.”

‘I grew up watching my mother make everything.’

Grace grew up surrounded by homemade things.

Her mother runs ‘The Goan Homestead’, a small home business selling pickles, jams, masalas, coconut oil, handmade soaps and ready-cooked foods. Their kitchen is rarely silent. On most days, something is always being dried, mixed, bottled, packed, or prepared for customers.

As a child, Grace spent years observing her mother work.

“I used to sit beside my mother and watch everything she made. Sometimes I would help her pack products or stick labels, and sometimes I would just sit quietly and watch because I found it interesting,” she recalls.

Maria laughs while remembering those moments. “She was always fascinated,” she says. “Even when she was younger, she liked understanding how things were made. Whether it was soaps, pickles or other products, she would ask questions about the ingredients and the process, and stand nearby watching everything.” Over time, helping became second nature to her.

“I don’t even remember exactly when I started helping my mother because it always felt normal in our house to sit together, help each other and learn while working,” Grace........

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