This week, we hosted 3 separate tours on the farm (phew, that’s a new record for us!). So, it’s fair to say that this week, we spent a lot of time sharing about the progress we’re making here. We moved a 200-year old barn from down to the road to our property, we’ve transformed brush and brambles into beautiful healthy pastures, we’ve improved our farm systems and grown our business faster than we ever could have expected. We are proud of these accomplishments, for sure. And yet, what is probably more impressive and less obvious to even our closest friends and family is all the ways the farm has changed us.
Our bodies were probably the first thing to change. Callused hands and body strength came within a few weeks. Aches and pains from the near constant physical exertion came within a few a months. Every now and then, there are the blisters, cracking skin, bruises, or tick bites to attend to. Yoga has become a required activity, instead of a leisure activity.
The other changes are more subtle. As two world travelers who used to spend their savings on overseas adventures, I thought we would eventually get stir-crazy staying put. The truth is, that we find more joy in being at home with our animals than we ever would have imagined.
We are natural introverts and usually re-charge by spending time alone. But the farm has brought us out of our skins and given us this incredible opportunity to share, educate and inspire. The farm pushes us to show up and be present in our community, even when our deepest instincts tell us to go it alone.
The farm has affected our marriage in ways that we probably can’t fully comprehend just yet. Running a business with the person you love most in this world isn’t always easy. But it has brought us closer, helped us understand each other more wholly, and appreciate each other’s strengths and weaknesses and limitations. It has taught us how to listen to one another and honor those hunches (or gut feelings) we get in the middle of the night that a fence is off or a pig might be farrowing (farm lingo for delivering piglets).
If what Eckert Tolle says is true, and the energy you put out in the world comes back to you, then I think we are in for a pretty spectacular life together here at Stonecrop Farm. Thanks for being on this journey with us.
Your Farmers,
Greg & Jenney
PS- We absolutely love hearing from you! What did you think of this newsletter and what would you like to hear more about in future newsletters?