2/7/2019

Dear Farm Journal,

I sit in a comfy chair on the second floor of the UW Stevens Point Library staring out the big bay windows as the snow flies.  Across from me sharing this narrow table sits Joy. This is our second year coming up here for a little working vacation. My sister and her husband live in Point and so we are escaping the isolation of the winter farm life.  I really enjoy this time in the library, the warmth and comfort of the sacred learning space. We are using this time to go over our budget and build our new website. Neither project are what one would consider fun though I am enjoying both about as much as one can.  The budget is a story we are telling ourselves about the year to come, can we actually make a living do this crazy work? Do we even want to? What can we do to improve our financial situation? Where does all the money go? I like thinking about these questions especially when Joy is involved. I keep telling her that 4 eyes are better than 2 or something to that degree, probably to the point of fault.  But I feel as if this is my montra, repeating a philosophy of together we will succeed. The webpage building has been another interesting process, frustrating at first but increasingly enjoyable as we near the ending. Today I uploaded a bunch of pictures, going back in my photographic archives to find some real gems. I’m feeling nostalgic, for my younger children, my younger self, past adventures, projects completed, time past I can never have back.  I see my younger self and wonder at all the things I tried, all the failures I endured and relationships which have come and gone. This work and life are so wrapped up in one another, so intertwined it’s hard to see where they seperate, and in fact they often do not. But perhaps that is a sign of a life well lived, if you so enjoy what you do and where you live. How can I not? When I look over these pictures, I see food, glorious, glorious food. I see smiling people and green grass. I see love, fruits of labor, ample sky, and cups filled to the brim with libations.  So why not do this another decade? Soon the snow will melt and another growing season will be upon us. Onward!

~Joy

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *