Monika (AKA Plantain) discusses her lived experience as a third-culture kid—the daughter of a Russian mother and Nigerian father—the gift of belonging everywhere and nowhere, how seeing her multi-faceted self in the faces of Reset is what drew her in, and the way the Reset community helps fulfill her need for "Vitamin I".
GUEST BIO: Monika is a vibrant, Black, mixed race, multilingual, cis woman who finds her place in intersections and in the margins. She was born on one continent, spent her early years on another, and then came to this continent, where she's lived ever since. Her heart sings when she feels like she's in community, when she's holding space for others, and when she's making or facilitating connections between people, ideas, or places. Plantain enjoys exploration, playfulness, salsa dancing, and lingering hugs.
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RESET is a non-profit social enterprise that addresses loneliness by creating liminal and permanent social infrastructure including adult summer camp, pop-up playgrounds, and more.
The Reset Living Room is located in Little Jamaica at 634 Vaughan Road in Toronto.
Camp Reset is an annual four-day tech-free, "no-work-talk" immersive experience that takes place at a traditional summer camp in Bancroft, Ontario, where participants are invited to choose alternate names and engage in rest and play.
At Camp Reset, Lara Margaret Marjerrison is known as Gem.
After Camp Reset 2023, Gem/Lara found herself pondering what, specifically, brought together 250 people from such diverse backgrounds and lived experiences. The People of Reset Series is an exploration in search of the through-line.
Learn more about Reset.
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INSIDE STORIES exists to foster connection in a world suffering and dying from disconnectivity. It seeks to examine the stories we tell and don’t tell and how that impacts us.
The INSIDE STORIES PEOPLE in PLACES PODCAST examines specifically our relationship with Place and its influence on our ways of existing, our beliefs about ourselves and others, and our sense of belonging…or not.