Family Business

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmAbOJgemDU See the inside of a White Nectarine, unbelievable! Hey folks, I personally, love change. I can't watch movies twice. I get bored with podcasts inside of 3-4 episodes. I seldom revisit a vacation or travel spot. I love change, newness, novelty. So when we had the chance to plant white nectarines 6 years ago, I jumped at it. Now they are in and I couldn't be happier with the results. (See the video above!) It makes me think about how Maize Quest has changed since we launched in 1997. Considering how little we new about building attractions, one can only surmise that it…

https://youtu.be/nda4QXuX1XM Ray Lewis, former All-Pro NFL Linebacker on "Effort" Effort is between you and you. I think a lot about what makes things work, what makes things happen, what makes success. To be clear, I don't mean the wins that flash by on highlight reels in social media, but lasting and true success, "Lives Changing" success. Ray Lewis gives a stirring speech on success in the video above at the University of Miami football camp. Click to watch the video approx 2mins. "I wasn't the #1 recruit. I wasn't the #1 linebacker. I wasn't the media guy." Don't we often feel like that?…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=430z_yfnh2A Watch us plant trees, but if you are feeling impatient, we did it in FastForward! Mmmmm, just a little patience, yeah yeah. Guns-n-Roses had it right back in 1989. Patience was the hit track on their 2nd album. Patience is part of life and leads to a happier, more peaceful life. I like the idea, but it never really stuck as a practice. I'd always say I was "without patience," "had no patience," "didn't like to wait," and so on, but as we were planting trees today, I thought of patience in a new light. One of my favorite Buddhist sayings is: "When is…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFRed2d9Zn8 Peach Blossoms are OUT at Maple Lawn Farms! "Cut whilst the tree is blooming." It never ceases to amaze me how much we prune out of the peaches each and every year. If you watch the video above, you'll see the carnage. From the brush in the middle of the rows, it looks like we must have killed the trees, but it is critical to prune fruit trees. Last year's injured crop required less energy, so the trees grew, well, tree; wood & branches. If you remember, 2022's late frost nicked the crop but didn't manage to kill it all. All…

We've all felt FOMO. Sometimes it's real. Other times, it indicates something else is missing… For instance, if missing an event makes you feel like a particular group of people won't include you in their group - It's your internal lack of self-worth exhibiting as fear. If missing a business trip makes you feel like everyone else will get the sale, be better friends at the office or be more financially successful, that is STILL not a reason to go. It means you have a fear of being excluded. If you have a "fear of missing out" on time with…

"80 out of 130 years." I've sort of always felt like a kid. No matter what age, so far anyway, I feel like the world is new, and I want to explore it. My Dad just turned 80 on Aug 2nd. My Aunt Margaret, pictured next to him in the sunflower festival field, and I wanted to do something special, so we're working on a family timeline that will eventually be on display for you all to see in the farm market area. In that process, we found a deed for what we think is the 2nd farm purchased by a family McPherson…

Hey Technicians, Blueberries, peaches, apples, lavender, corn, and sunflowers all have eyes for the sun.In Genesis, God separated the dark from the light, which was the first move He made.Darkness and light, yin and yang, sleeping and waking, there is a balance between these forces of nature for a reason. Recently, the farm had been dry. Dusty country roads billowed out behind my truck as I drove to work from home. The sun shone brightly. It was hot. The sunflowers started tracking the sun, maximizing their exposure as I slathered on sunscreen and put on my floppy, wide-brimmed hat. Nearing the…