Farm Day!

Pulling weeds on a Saturday morning. It was just what I needed.

Tyler and I took an early morning trip to our CSA site this past Saturday to volunteer our unskilled labor by pulling weeds, picking strawberries and playing the role as overly enthused city dwellers on a farm. It was quite refreshing and relaxing to be in the valley surrounded by mountains, with views of orange and avocado orchards and three Red-tailed hawks circling overhead. It wasn't all fun and games though; I did have to babysit a little girl's squirmy green worm named "Jeremy" when she decided she was tired of weeding for the moment. But, she did come back shortly because her friend called her out on being lazy and not helping. They were 7.

Loofah plant before and...

...after! Now you may use it to scrub yourself clean!

The reason we were able to pretend to be farmers for the day is our CSA, Tierra Miguel Farm, holds a monthly volunteer day to allow farm share subscribers to help them out with various chores around the farm. They are also gracious enough to give us an educational farm tour, share fruits and vegetables along the way and answer all our gardening questions. As we were walking and talking one of the kids noticed long green leaves poking up from the soil. "What are those?" They asked curiously. "Carrots!" answered Mill, the resident farmer. "You should pull some out." And, boy, were their expressions priceless when they magically pulled out long orange carrots from the soil! Later on in the morning while I was weeding and conversing with a fellow adult, she shared that her friend brought her son to the farm one volunteer day and since then he hasn't stopped talking about "the farm" and how he loves his fruits and veggies now. Isn't that awesome? It can take only one day of exploration and hands-on experiences to discover where food comes from and a child eats healthier and enjoys it.

I feel fortunate that small farms, like Tierra Miguel, are available to us urbanites, to replenish and renew the senses with a clean, open environment and memories to tide us over until next time. And it is important that there will be a next time. I am glad I have the opportunity to support one farm by being a part of the farm share and taking my good experiences to other people to share. But small farms are few and far between in the U.S. and finding ways to support their business and ideals can be challenging in the mega-corporation world, but if we don't where are we going to take our kids to discover where carrots come from or taste the best strawberries in the world?

So, we filled our bellies with sweetest strawberries you'll ever taste and nourished our country-loving souls until next time...

Enjoy!

Marci