A sense of connection

Last Saturday, a family from Ghana stopped at our farm. The man got out of the car and started talking to me, asking abut our chickens. He saw the chicken coop, which was at the time close to the road, and was interested in buying a live chicken to slaughter for his family. I told him that we're not ready to part with our chickens, but I'd call him when we are. Then I could tell there was something else, as he just stood there and seemed hesitant to leave. He looked towards the fields sort of wistfully, and then told me that he likes our farm very much because it reminds him of his home in Ghana.

That our farm reminds people of something dear to their heart and soul, is something that occasionally comes up, and when it does it makes me very happy. A Russian couple who first came to our farm two years ago and is now part of our CSA, told me that our farm reminded them of a dacha back home, a little farm in the country associated with simple living, comfort and family. Anther couple in our CSA is from Nepal, and every week when they come for their pickup they stay a while, walking arond the field and visiting the cows and chickens with their little son. There is clearly something else drawing them to our farm besides the veggies. Yesterday the husband told me that what they come here for is real food and a sense of connection. He said that this is very important to them: connection to the land, and to a lifestyle they still hold dear from their past.

This sense of connection that draws some people to our farm is one of the most important reasons I farm. I think that the great intelligence we call God or Spirit or Tao is in everything, but I find it most tangible in natural physical things like the land, all the life forms it supports, the rythms of the seasons, and so on. I don't know if this is the kind of connection that people feel when they come here, or if it's connection with something from their past - a different lifestlyle, forgotten traditions, or maybe grandparents who used to grow food and keep animals. Maybe a little of everything. Whichever it is, I am happy that they feel it when they come here.

In contrast to that, we sometimes, rarely thank goodness, have people who come who just want to get the best whatever for the lowest price. We had one lady recently, who was eying all the vegetables like just so much merchandise. She kept picking up one bag of lettuce after another, slapping them back on the table after a quick look, searching for "the best one". Her attitude struck me as disrespectful towards us, and towards the lettuce, and mostly she struck me as disconnected. Not thinking that other people may not appreciate her touching all the bags before picking one, not thinking that we may not appreciate her smashing our hard work of harvesting and preparing the lettuces. This is an extreme example, and maybe she was just having a hard day. I hope so, for her sake.  Maybe she'll feel more connected to her lettuce when she eats it. Maybe she'll think abut the little seeds that went in the ground, the sun and rain that helped them along, the soil and its miriad forms of life that nourrished them, and the work and love we put into growing her lettuce. This would be a nice way to eat, and I bet it would bring a smile to her lips and a sense of peace in her heart.

Peace