October is august

I have trusted that the produce has been walking the walk of late, as I have had hardly a moment to talk of the walk.  What a productive and constructive year it has been!  From early Spring plantings of fruit trees and berries to a nearly constructed high tunnel, from raising chickens for meat to installing a new drip irrigation system, from baby to busy, babbling boy to a new ballooning baby in Courtney’s belly, from asparagus (just planted this Spring) to zucchini, our cup has overflowed with exciting, growing things.

In addition to our veteran, generous contributors, this year we owe a brimming bushel of thanks to Ronnie and Lori Hager, who just last week concluded their successful internship program.  Despite faltering utilities, scorching drought and the normal (yet unfamiliar to them) hardships of farming, these two friends were a constant, positive force propelling the farm along.  They may never want to see another tomato plant again.  But we have them to thank for the many hours  they spent bringing in the many bountiful harvests from the fields.  It was a pleasure to share this growing season with them, to learn from them and think and laugh with them.  We wish them the best going forward and hope that in them the agrarian seed has been planted and will never die.

Winter shares?

If you are interested in extending the CSA season into the Winter, please let me know.   Because the high tunnel construction is not completed, I don’t think we can offer a full, Winter-long share, but there is quite a bit of food here beyond what will be delivered the next two weeks.  Perhaps we could make deliveries every couple weeks until the new year.  I am curious to learn how much demand there is before getting too far into the logistics.

Egg shares

Thanks for your patience and understanding as we continue to run short on eggs.    We simply need more laying hens, and it will be a while before we can remedy the situation.  When there is a shortage, we rarely partake ourselves, so at least know that we are missing out too!

Whittling away at the list

The sweet potatoes have been dug.  Winter cover crops have taken the place of Summer food crops.  Irrigation supplies have been pulled from the fields and stored in the barn.  At present we are in the middle of garlic planting, which, besides mulching the garlic, is the last big farming project every year.  There is not much work remaining to finish off the high tunnel.  Soon cutting, splitting, hauling, stacking and burning firewood will be my main outside occupation.  It is quite a refreshing change of pace to watch the list grow shorter.

Closing time

This is the time of year that I first fell in love with farming.  There is something ineffably magical about October.  Besides the majesty and fanfare of vibrant leaves, there is the crispness in the morning, the pure pleasantness of a sunny afternoon, the feeling of completion, rightness, and relief that accompanies death.  It is as if the earth is imbued with wisdom and poignancy.  We are invited to look back over the lives we lived, to let go of the relentless weight of urgency and busyness, to feel it is good to go gentle into that good night.  The story is writ, the cycle spun, the deal done, and—whatever suffering may have come to pass—we give thanks for this great mysterious aliveness and know that it will ever keep springing anew, with or without us.  A season for every thing, and in this one we celebrate the rich gift of death.

Next year we will have a new little person in the mix.  How will the farming get done?  Good question.  The answer, I think, is the same it has been for years now: more generous offerings of humbling help.  We are blessed beyond belief here.  I am proud to be a part of such a strong and compassionate, giving and joyful community.  I don’t think life is easy for anyone anywhere, but I think life is truly good when you are doing good work with good people.  To quote my dad quoting Dag Hammarskjold, “For all that has been, thanks.  For all that will be, yes!”