did another sweat lodge yesterday, and again, it felt really good. aiyana came too this time, and she went in the lodge with me the entire time. sena and ed stayed outside. at one point, it started snowing hard, and hale was coming down, and the wind was blowing fierce. inside the lodge is was hot and steamy, peaceful and protected. it felt so good to be in there like that, listening to the voices of the wind outside. after the lodge was over, it felt invigorating to come out into the cold, and as i rummaged around in the darkness, looking for my clothes and boots and all my belongings, i just could not stop laughing. i just felt so free and light and good. today i'm still feeling really good, and i do believe that sweating like that is very beneficial for my health, getting rid of toxins, not to mention clearing the mind. i'm also glad that aiayana was in there with me. it was a special thing to share. i held her little hand most of the time, not because she was afraid, but because i wanted us to feel close.

other that that, the last week and a half has been really busy. lots of changes and new additions. we cleared another 1.5 acres of our land, which was all brushy and tangled with bittersweet vines. we're going to put down a covercrop in the next couple of weeks, and then the plan is to put in an orchard. it's a long term plan, but one that is very exciting. we're thinking of a variety of fruit trees and bushes, as well as some nuts. we hired ed's cousin and his crew for clearing the land, and they did a grood job.

we also got more animals: 3 new cats, for rodent control, and 25 baby chicks, which are now in the house under a heating lamp, but will be going outside with the rest of the flock in a few weeks.

the CSA is just over 90% full. i already started soil blocks in the greenhouse, for onions, and some brassicas and they're germinating. our new unheated greenhouse already has spinach, lettuces, radishes, carrots, beets, and greens growing in the ground, which is incredible (i planted on february 2nd). what a winter!
this coming week, we're going to try to plant more vegetables outside, since the ground is not really frozen.

we've been doing some maple syrup as well, just for fun with the kids. we won't get much, just something for our family.
that's about it for an update.

peace

our CSA is doing well. we've been getting applications every day, and they're still coming.last night a woman stopped by to drop off her application, and she was so kind, thanking us for farming the way we do, and just being very appreciative of our efforts in general. that feels really good. farming doens't pay very much, but to know that what we do means so much to some people is quite a payment in itself.

earlier this week i went to visit Erica from Hurricane Farm. we spent a really nice couple of hours together, having tea and talking about farm life, with all its challenges, but also its beauty. erica showed me around her farm, and her animals. it was really good to be talking to someone who's experiencing so much of what i am. she is also a mother of 2 young children, and a full-time farmer. we were talking about how there's always so much to do: outside, inside, with the kids, the house, cooking, cleaning, etc. it really felt good to be undwerstood that way, and when i left i felt truly refreshed, and also, inspired to keep doing what i'm doing. it's always funny to me how i can complain so much about the intensity of my life, yet love it at the same time. i don't want to do anything else. i think it's all because of the land. at least for me it is. once you develop a relationship with the land, an intimate, daily relationship, you're hooked. you'll put up with hardships and disappointments, because the land, besides challenging you, can also sooth you and heal you and give you a sense of connection like almost nothing else can. it's very much like having children.

peace

my friend posted a nice little write-up on joining a CSA. she moved south of here over a year ago, and joined a CSA near her new home. she speaks from experience, and gives useful tips for anyone who's thinking of joining a CSA. here is her posting.

food prices

i've been planning to write something on food pricing, specifically on small farm vs. supermarket differences. but my sister emailed me this little piece which says what i wanted to very nicely. the farmer quoted here has had similar experiences and is addressing the price issue from a similar point of view. this is an excerpt from a larger article, which you can find in its entirety here. 

Why Is Sustainably-Produced Food Priced Higher?

"Every week during the growing season, my husband and I cart our family’s grassfed meats to market. We sell pork chops for $11 a pound; ground beef goes for $7.50.

Every week, we meet someone who tells us the prices are too high.

In fact, at those prices, the average net income for our family members has maxed out at $10 per hour. But part of our job is to hold our chins up and accept weekly admonishment for our inability to produce food as cheaply as it can be found in the grocery store.

The truth is, food in the grocery store is not cheap. We pay for it in advance with our tax dollars, which support farm subsidies that go to support an ecologically problematic industrialized food system. We pay for it with the lives of our soldiers and with the unfathomable military expenditures that support our national reliance on fossil fuels, upon which the industrial farming model is completely dependent. The prices only look cheap because we are paying for them someplace else: through our taxes, and via the destruction of our soil, water, and natural resources through irresponsible farming practices.

The viability of a small farm is dependent not just on garnering a living wage, but on our ability to steward our land in a way that allows it to stay healthy and productive into the future. Industrial food production, in contrast, currently depends on farm subsidies—and on a license to deplete soils and pollute water for immediate profit with no regard for what happens tomorrow. This is our nation’s cheap food policy: Make the food in the grocery store as inexpensive as possible, so that we can justify lower working wages for Americans.

With policies like this, we are losing our farmers; we are also poisoning our public with toxic food. Between 1999 and 2006, the CDC estimated that 45% of American adults were suffering from chronic illness. You can’t tell me that has no connection to the food supply."

 

sweat lodge

Sena, Ed and I went to our first sweat lodge last Sunday. It was a beautiful, intimate ceremony, held in the Lakota tradition, and led by an amazing family we have recently become friends with. This is what my experience was like:

Earth, Air, Water, Fire.

Power,

Humility,

Authenticity.

Total darkness,

Intense heat,

Water on red hot stones,

Steam.

Total darkness,

Like a womb.

Deafening drumbeat.

Sacred chanting

Thanksgiving

Prayer.

Sweat

Running down my body

In rivers.

Air so hot,

Burning my nostrils.

Lying my body against the Earth

For strength,

And cool relief.

Feeling the soil,

Rich, dark and moist

Against my skin.

Feeling my heart beat wildly

With the deafening drum,

The only sound I hear

So all encompassing

Like silence.

Relishing the feeling

Of laying on the ground

Black earth against my arm, my neck, my face

Direct, intimate contact

Like a lover

Just where I need to be.

Let go of everything,

Without even trying

Only the drum.

After the fourth door,

Came out into the sunshine and cool air

Of a winter day

Feeling clear, light

And happy,

Like a child.