It was dusty for so long that I yearned for a rain shower to wash things clean.
It’s rained for 4 days, and I can’t wait for it to stop.
Apparently, my feelings are fickle, seasonal even, but either way, they can’t be trusted. Mastering one’s feelings is a lifelong tension, not a problem to solve.
In both situations above, each was good in its own way; my negative perceptions were based on my desires and expectations not being met.
I know, I know, that’s a little heavy for this time of year, but it leads me towards the value of appreciating the season – the now.
There is so much to be thankful for that we feel a race to do everything without enjoying anything. I feel constantly pulled by my internal thoughts and plans that I struggle to be present and enjoy now.
You’ve felt it. That time when you were entirely focused on playing with your kids, listening to music, walking in the forest, and the world melted away, leaving you wholly entranced at the moment. Time slowed, and you felt soooooooo good.
I recently experienced this on one of the season’s first pumpkin-picking wagon rides. I drove the wagon to the field, and with nothing else to do but wait for the guests to pick their pumpkins, I relaxed.
I looked around at people lining up their annual family pictures. I listened to the children giggling as they discovered crazy pumpkin after crazy pumpkin, saying, “I found a perfect one! Wait, this one’s perfect! No this one!”
It was blissful to release my to-do list and simply be in the patch with people.
Time expands, and the world is abundant when we stay in the present moment. Distractions of phones, emails, and social media, are designed to pull you out of your surroundings and into a world that makes you feel less than yourself, so you’ll keep scrolling to find the next passing novelty.
Distractions create scarcity.
Being present creates abundance. This year, farmers everywhere, including us, have been planting, tending, prepping, and working to create abundance.
Now, even this weekend, that abundance is here. Our apple trees are loaded with apples, crisping gently in the cool night air. The vines’ leaves have just started to yellow into autumn colors and slowly shrink back, revealing the pumpkins. The corn, tall, green, and mighty, bears the weight of cobs filled with kernels.
The farm is abundant; this is the season for it.
You can’t relive last weekend. You can’t jump forward to the next. The precious time together only happens now. Escape a distracted life and rescue your family from it as you drive to the countryside with no agenda, no timetable, just filled with gratitude and an attitude of seasonal abundance.
The apples and pumpkins and memorable moments filled with delicious flavors and punctuated by squeals of delight await.
See you soon down on the farm,
Famer Hugh
PS Can you count to 100,000?! That’s how many pumpkins are hidden in our patch under the leafy green vines. Come find your favorite!
