Make Love Not Landfill

Sorry for the length….it’s been so long though.

The farm has seen some major changes as of late.  Things are winding down as the Wordens wrap up their growing season.  The greenhouse is empty, weekly seeding ended this week, and the majority of the beds are cleared.  Last week was our last pick up for the CSA members, who have been coming every Wednesday since December.  It was the busiest and most important day of the season.  Over the course of four hours there were probably upwards of 300 people who came to the farm.  I’m quite happy those days are now over – it made for a very long day (12 hours), and more often than not they were somewhat stressful.  From now on the only busy days will be Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, since there is no more CSA harvesting to do.  There are only three markets to harvest for, and one of those ends this weekend.  I’m ready for a slower and more relaxed pace after so many months of hardcore work.

Our crew has been reduced – the other two apprentices are gone, and two other crew members are gone.  One of them is Juanito, whom I worked with on harvest days.  His light-hearted presence is truly missed.  Several months back (I’m not sure exactly how and when it began), he started calling me Paulita.  Over time the others caught on, and everyone has come to know me as and call me Paulita.  I love that I can be whoever I am around the crew, and they all still find me charming (for example, I’m a pro at burping, and I make no secret of it.  They always laugh when they hear me, one of the only two women, release these huge burps.  It’s my way of letting them know that, although I may be “little Paula”, I have a rough side and I can do whatever they can). 

Two Saturdays ago was a big day for the St. Petersburg market, and for me.  A journalist, Lance, from the USDA in Washington D.C., came to the market to witness and record the setup, process, and break down of the market.  He’s working on a piece along the lines of “know your farmer, know your food”.  I was quite nervous when he brought out his camera to record our interview – I even had a microphone attached.  That was a first.  He could tell that I had some issues with the farm, so he didn’t make me go too in depth about my overall experience here.  I instead focused on my personal experiences of farming, how it was managing a market, and why I was interested in sustainable agriculture.  Eventually the interviews and videos will be on the USDA website, on flicker. 

Saturdays in St. Pete are just so wonderful – our experienced crew rocks that place.  During the fall the market was somewhat chaotic and disorganized.  A lot has changed since then, and now it flows smoothly from start to finish and everyone knows his/her tasks.  Managing a market, and crew of fifteen people has been the most rewarding experience I’ve had during this apprenticeship.  I’ve discovered that, although uncomfortable at first, I have the capability of delegating tasks to the workers.  I know everything (well, most things) that need to happen in order for the market to be successful.  Those things include: unloading the truck in a timely and orderly manner (with Carlos’ gracious help); setting up the tables and display so they are presentable and inviting; pricing items according to our supply; answering customer questions; working on special orders, consolidating the display as our supplies dwindle; reducing prices so we don’t bring home wasted produce; managing breaks; filling out necessary end-of-day paperwork; interviewing potential employees; and loading the truck at the end of the day.  Now, I couldn’t do all of this without Dalton, my co-manager.  He has provided me with excellent guidance and advice – he’s on his third season at the market.  He has given me the reigns and allows me to make most of the decisions.  He is truly a great friend, co-worker, and landlord. 

Although I haven’t learned as much about the science behind organic farming as I wanted to, I have learned a lot of other things, about myself, about people, and about what I don’t want.  Perhaps it’s appropriate that most of my development has been personal, it being my first farm, my first time living in a shared household with strangers, my first time really living away from home.  At first I didn’t know if I was cut out for it (for traveling and living away from home).  I was quite homesick for most of the fall, and I used to think I would come home in May and find work there.  That’s all different now.  I miss my family and friends, but there’s too much for me to see, learn, and discover to stay in one spot for long.  I’ve learned to be me, whoever that is.  It’s amazing how this happens when you relocate – no one knows you or your history, so you don’t have to fit a mold or image.  No one has any expectations of you, until they get to know you of course. I guess my point is that you can let people get to know the real you, the authentic you.  I always thought I was my authentic self, and to a large degree I probably was, but now I’m 100% - I have clarity in place of fuzziness.

Only three weeks left!  I’m more than ready to move onto new places and meet new people.  Those I’ve met here are incredible, and will forever hold a special place in my memory.  This place has become home to me, and throughout my future travels I will keep it at the top of my list for potential places to live.  It’s strange, yet exciting, to think about picking up and moving to somewhere completely different, again.  My summer is shaping up nicely.  On May 17^th I’ll start my trek home, where I will be for two weeks.  During my first week home I’m going to Illinois for Summer Camp, a weekend-long music festival.  I’m volunteering my labor in return for a weekend ticket to the event.  For the month of June I’m set to work on a farm in Kent City, Michigan, called Earthkeeper Farm. I’ve found several farms through WWOOF (willing workers on organic farms).  These farms provide a place to stay and shared meals in exchange for work.  I think volunteering will be a more rewarding experience, and I hopefully won’t be a mere laborer.  However, I’ll keep my expectations low (another thing I’ve learned from this apprenticeship). At the end of June I’ll be at Electric Forest, another music festival in Rothbury, Michigan.  Again, I’m volunteering at the event in exchange for a ticket.  I will then head home for another week or so, as I plan/pack for my trip west – New Mexico.  I’ve emailed five farms in the Santa Fe/Taos region, and am currently waiting for replies.  The plan is to be in that region through July and August.

I have this amazing sense of connection right now.  It’s a connection that goes deeper than just to a place.  I feel balanced, healthy, stable, and at peace.  I live in a beautiful environment, where most days are dazzling and sunny; I live in a peaceful house where everyone gets along; I eat the things I plant, grow, harvest, and prepare.  There’s a lot to be said about the importance of eating locally.  I believe more than anything else, more than eating organically, that eating locally is the healthiest and most environmentally sound way to eat.  Local produce offers superior nutrition, taste, and energy compared to conventional.  This, I believe, is why I feel so balanced (along with the abundant about of vitamin D I take in everyday).  I pick my own dinner just hours before I eat it – it’s still alive, surging with energy and enzymes.  Moreover, it’s a local energy system – I spend my energy planting and harvesting, in return I eat the produce, filling me with vital nutrients and energy, I then use that energy to continue in my planting and harvesting.  It’s pretty neat.  And I’ve only been in this lifestyle for a mere seven months.  Imagine what it will feel like years from now.  I’m excited to visit new farms, and plan on pursuing this path for the foreseeable future – however long that is, since nothing is guaranteed and the world around us is in a constant state of flux.  I’m letting go and flowing any direction, with my feet below me as I put nothing but my positive energy into my world, for we are all creators of our own universe. 

End note: For those of you who really know me, you also know of my beloved water bottle.  This water bottle was hit just a little too hard a few weeks ago, and developed a tiny hole on the side.  It has been by my side for four years, every day, every event, trip, job, class, car ride, and friend’s house.  It will be dearly missed.  So take a mental note of it, because that’s all you’ll have now…and remember, make love not landfill.