THE SIMPLE JOY OF FIRE.
I came down into the hollow and saw the lightly smoldering pile of ashes with a couple of the Smith's children gathered around. A day or so before, a large heap of branches had been burned in that spot and the kids were trying to get a small fire started from the remaining embers. The few twigs and pieces of paper they had were smoking, but the children hadn't yet been able to coax any flames to devour their offering.These kids are farm children and accustomed to fire. They've been taught how to respect it and on many occasions I've watched them keep small fires going for days. Getting this one started, however, had them stumped.I grabbed a small, flat piece of wood and demonstrated how to safely fan the fire into existence. Opal, the middle Smith child, took the wood from me and tried what I suggested. Suddenly, as if by magic, flames engulfed her piece of paper and the fire and the children were both off and running, excitedly seeking more fuel.Obviously, children shouldn't have unsupervised access to fire. But they shouldn't be kept entirely removed from it either. We as a species have a rich connection to fire––fire gave us warmth, power, and energy-dense food. We exist the way we do because of fire. I've realized lately in my own experiences with fire (which are daily), how much I enjoy having it be an essential part of my daily life––the gathering of kindling, the sculpting of the pile and controlling of the flames. And, like reconnecting with an ancient pet, it brings me a nostalgic brand of satisfaction to be around fire, to watch and learn from those flames––a type of satisfaction I spent most of my life obliviously missing. So as I watched six-year-old Opal rushing around for kindling, I was happy to see her experiencing something similar to what I experience every morning and night: the elation that comes from being in control of one's very own source of warmth, comfort and energy. Or, I suppose, the simple joy of fire.- Jesse.
RAINY DAY POTLUCK.
The weather cooperated enough on Sunday for us to host some friends/CSA shareholders at the farm. We had an incredible potluck meal (complete with ginger marinated venison....!), a hay wagon tour of the farm, and the inevitable swim in the creek.Hearing Eric give a tour of his farm, his vision for healing the land, the ram pump...it reminds me of the year I was an intern, of falling in love with the magic of this place. Seeing it through the eyes of visitors allows me to remember how amazing this all is.And how amazing it is that now, a few short years later, we can walk up the road to give a tour of our vision, our land, our growing farm.- Hannah.
NEED MORE ACRES FARM.
When we first met Michelle from Need More Acres we were lucky enough to be set up next to her at the Kentucky Green Living Fair. But that was decidedly not our first experience with Michelle. The previous fall, she and her husband Nathan had donated all the profits from one week of their market sales to our Cabin Campaign long before they'd ever met us. And we were floored. It was, without a doubt, one of the more generous gifts we'd ever received––to receive such a large amount of money from a farm, and from strangers. So you can imagine how reluctant we were to apply for their Planting Seeds Program, which offered young farmers a portion of profits from the sales at this past week's Heirloom Tomato Festival, to be used for a project the young farmer can't afford. But at the behest of Michelle we applied, and this week they raised a great deal of money, to be dispersed among some amazing people with big ideas.Put simply, Hannah and I are deeply inspired by Need More Acres. They are not only building community, but helping many young farmers along the way. They want to feed. They want to give. And I don't know if they set out to inspire, but they are doing that, too.We can't wait to get to a point where we can give and feed and inspire as they do. It's a goal of ours. It's a goal to join Need More Acres in helping to build community and strengthen Kentucky's small farmers. And it's nice for us, and for Kentucky, to have such a great model farm to follow.Thank you, Michelle and Nathan, your actions do not go unnoticed nor unappreciated.- Jesse.AND - as a PS....Need More Acres do, in fact, need more acres! They are looking for land opportunities (buy or trade) to grow their year-round Bowling Green CSA. What they currently do with just 2 acres is incredible, so I can only imagine how they will continue to grow. If you have any ideas or suggestions, let them know!
