The only way out is through.. (CSA Week 12)

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“I have planted by the stars in defiance of the experts,

and tilled somewhat by incantation and by singing,

and reaped, as I knew, by luck and Heaven’s favor,

in spite of the best advice.” – Wendell Berry

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Hi Friends & Farm-ily,

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Well, it’s that time in the season… August is here and physically we’re feeling it. The sun and heat and heavy lifting can really take it out of you. August is also the month where you really can lose your cool mentally.. the endless summer lists of things to do can be quite daunting.   It’s that time in the season where “now is the time” echoes with all the things on the farm. Seeding, planting, tilling, eating a meal, feeding the animals, mowing, harvesting, composting, bucking 30 tons of hay, eating another meal, weeding, watering, hoeing, flame weeding, eating again (what are we hobbits or something…?), watering the critters, smoothie time… repeat, repeat, repeat.

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Every weekend since mid-July we’ve been planting out close to 2,500 row feet of Fall crops!   And we still have so much more to plant. Come September we’ll have planted out the farm entirely all over again. Planting that much can be pretty monotonous at times but we’ve been putting our heads down and powering through…reciting the mantra once told to us by a fellow farmer the only way out is through.  

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It’s been a much different season compared to last summer. It was SO hot and this time last year we had heirloom tomatoes, melons and even ripening peppers last year. That was definitely not a typical Oregon summer. That being said, it also seems to be slightly cooler than normal summer this year especially at night (last week it even dipped into the high 40’s!). The monthly forecast looks good though and we’ll just have to practice patience with those hot weather loving crops. It’s worth reiterating how glad we are so glad that we planted into the geotextile fabric this year – it really seems to be warming up the soil for our solanaceas (tomatoes, peppers & eggplant) and we’re seeing SO many fruits!  It’s like a tomato & pepper jungle out there.

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We’ve been listening to a lot of Wendell Berry interviews while planting in the field and found inspiration in this little snippet:  “The answers will come, not from walking up to your farm and saying ‘this is what I want, [and] this is what I expect from you..You walk up and say, ‘what do you need?’ and you commit yourself and say, ‘alright I’m not going to do any extensive damage here until I know what it is you’re asking of me’. And this can’t be hurried.” – Wendell Berry

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During the summer, it’s easy to get frustrated or stressed or overwhelmed when there’s so much to do.. I try my best to vocalize how I feel so it’s easier for me to process and get myself out from under the mountain. To rise up and enjoy the view from the top because what we’re accomplishing as two people is pretty darn amazing. It’s not easy and it’s not perfect but we’re doing it. We’re farming close to 7 acres this year just the two of us. That’s 3.5 acres of veggies each… I have no idea how many plants we take care of but I will say that we harvest well over 100,000lbs of veggies in a season.  We feed over 500 individuals.  As well as maintaining all the things on the farm, 20 acres of pasture, 30 four-legged critters, 100 two legged critters and a whole lot of baby plants and weeds (we have plenty of those).

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One step at a time.  Since it is just the two of us it’s important for us to stay positive and encourage each other throughout the day.  As well as eating as many delicious homemade meals that we can (it’d be impossible to do what we do without proper nourishment!)   We do our best to dole out high fives, check in with each other and tell each other that their doing an amazing job.  We’re not sure what the big picture answer is in relation to the workload that we currently have going but we are confident that in time the balance will come and our goals will realign.  We certainly know what we can accomplish when the two of us put our heads together… now more than ever it just feels right to reel it in and realign!  We’re in it for the long haul and we love growing and raising the best possible food for our community that we can.  A BIG THANK YOU to our members and surrounding community all for your encouragement and excitement this season!  We’ve seriously loved every second of it and it truly makes our day when we see what everyone is cooking up in the CSA Member Page.  It connects all the dots.

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We LOVE farming which is what keeps us motivated mentally.   It’s the whole “clean hearts” part of our mission. Feeding our community amazing fresh food is just the best. And sharing in our daily farm life with our community is deeply rewarding. Nowhere else in our lives can we be provided with such transparency especially within our food system/how our food is grown. You know who’s hands have seeded, weeded, planted, watered, and harvested all your food just hours before you pick it up. It’s pretty amazing! It’s been 12 bountiful weeks on the farm with so much more ahead! Many more endless possibilities..

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Speaking of clean & full hearts, we also celebrated our second year anniversary as a married couple on Tuesday. Hard to believe we even pulled off getting married in the beginning of August. (what were we thinking!?) Thank goodness for all the friends and family who came and lent a hand the days leading up to it… I always think fondly of that time and experience and it’s definitely one of my favorite memories of our wedding. Besides marrying my best friend, of course.  Brian summed it up well, “This road has been a hard road to hoe but there isn’t a day that goes by where you don’t make it look easy.”  I couldn’t agree more – #bettertogether

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So many things can happen in the course of a few years. Its been a wild ride and I feel so thankful that I have someone like Brian to move through these days with – there sure is something special and sacred that we share between us and I thank my lucky stars for the universe bringing us together. Farming is a mutual passion for both of us and one of the main reasons our paths first crossed. He is my other half (most often my better half) and my favorite person and I feel so lucky to walk through this life with him.  I wanted to share a poem that Farmer B wrote about our first anniversary… it’s a good’un…

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1st anniversary

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We will mark this occasion by planting Fall crops,

Into freshly turned soil that has been given time.

By rotating our cows and pigs onto fresh grass that has regrown after,

A quick first pass in the cool spring.

And by tending to our flock of hens, watching them,

Watching their newly hatched chicks discover the world,

Learning to hide under mother hen as the Red Tails call.

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We will celebrate this day by doing what needs to be done

By setting future failures aside and focusing on the tasks at hand.

Making our way past the English Hawthorns down to the river and back.

We will do what gives us gravity, a place, a home and

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Gratitude.

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“Farm sweet Farm” said the screen print set in a good solid frame.

Our first wedding gift.

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After eating a good breakfast made with all good things,

We will make a list and make priorities,

And prioritize the things that cannot wait.

We will work side by side,

Begging the farm to give us permission.

Thinking of all the friends and our family that we carry with us.

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And we will first work under the light of the blue moon,

As the crickets drowned the noisiness of the world,

And we will sleep deeply with gratitude for all we have been given.

To adventure and to those endless possibilities.

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We will celebrate this day by doing.

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By Farmer B

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With full hearts  we look forward to what the rest of the summer harvest season will bring. Send us your bottled up energy and well wishes! It’s amazing what a little encouragement and cookies (for farmer brian) will do 😉  And a big thank you to the food faeries in the CSA who have been leaving homemade goodies, snacks, cold treats and even dinners.  You have been lifesavers for your farmers!  Thank you for thinking of us!

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Be well and take care of yourselves!

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With kind regards,

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Jess & Brian

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dirty hands, clean hearts

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