VIDEO: MIND, BODY, AND SOIL.
So I made a video. It's a bit of an experiment––making videos––so I will take any and all suggestions on how I can make it better. The goal is to be able to make videos like this that are fun (hopefully fun) but that are efficient––finding time to make videos is not easy. So anyway, let us know what you think. Got tips or pointers (besides to spell the word "guarantee" correctly the first time)? I'd love to hear them!-Jesse.
I AM GARDEN.
A persistent theme on this blog has been that we don't want comparison to be the thief of joy––we don't want people to come to our site, think we live some perfect homesteading existence and leave feeling worse about themselves. We are not, to be sure, Martha Stewart's of off-grid farming. We are messy like anyone, dirty like all farmers, normal. For that reason, we always try to be as honest and transparent as we can because the goal of this blog is more to inspire people to do what they want to, or long to, than it is to impress you with our perfection. Perfect we are not. Fortunate. Happy. Those I'll accept.But transparency is not always easy, and I'm not always aware of when we are putting on a show.Take for instance a recent visit we had with our photographer friend Tim who was shooting for an exciting project (more on that later). I found myself at 7 a.m. on that Sunday feverishly running our machinery through the garden to get the weeds in check. The potatoes got a fresh hilling up. The cucumber bed suddenly found itself ready to plant. Everything not food got mowed. In essence, I scrubbed the garden.Once Tim arrived, I finally went inside to change clothes into something mildly less dusty. It was then, in front of the mirror, that I realized I had put zero thought into what I was going to wear. Zero thought into trimming my beard. Zero thought into my hair. I thought only about the garden. Then, looking at my reflective wildness, I laughed.I laughed because I realized in that moment that I have become our garden. And it is admittedly sometimes hard for me to show it to you. This small plot of land is my most intimate representation. I don't just take pride in it, I am it. It is me. So when I want to present myself to the world, I pull my weeds, harrow my beds, clean my paths and cultivate. Even then I hesitate, because even then it's still too revealing, too cluttered, not in shape yet.I don't know what this says about me, I just know that it isn't always easy to show the world the weeds, even if I'm the only one who can see them. My personal weeds, that's okay. My depression, my anxieties, that time I fell off the porch eating watermelon––that's all fine. The garden, however, is different. It's painfully personal, even though, or perhaps especially because, we want it to be a community space––shareholder owned––I still feel protective over it like an unfinished short story, or an unabashed love of pop music.So I just hope when you look at a picture of me––the bearded me––you can still feel good about yourself. And when you look at a picture of the garden, you know I'm sharing something really special. Because I do believe in showing you the dirt. But like anyone does when they have guests, I can't help but tidy up a little first.-Jesse.
MESSY MONDAY.
It has been awhile since we've done one of these posts...and February on the farm is definitely the perfect time! All of the rain, the freezing and thawing and snow - it makes for a whole lotta MUD. I mean, really muddy - like several inches thick mud that slorps and sucks your boots with every step. Plus, all of the vegetation is dead and brown, which makes every random tool, forgotten watering can or bit of garbage stand out. Basically - its ugly and messy this time of year. Just keeping it real.BUT, we are sowing seeds and organizing the greenhouse, knowing that soon enough we won't be able to keep the growth from consuming everything. The mess will be forgotten under the green until next winter.-Hannah.
IN THE BIG GARDEN.
We took a rainy walk to up to the big garden the other day, and it was misty and magical. The season is unbelievably busy right now, but we feel like we sort of have things under control. Just before the rain, we all busted our butts to get the sweet potatoes planted (a HUGE project), along with ginger, zucchini, peppers, and eggplant. Hooray for perfect timing!
