Farmers on vacation... Talk to anyone about farming, and one of the first things that will come up is the long hours, the constant demands on your time, and the way farmers feel bound to their land. Of course, this is all true, in some ways, but when Sarah and I started our farm, we wanted to build a different kind of model. We value travel highly, and wanted to have the freedom to take time away from the daily grind. We have worked hard to create a farm with resiliency, and even redundancy, that allows us to take vacations, include paid vacation time for our crew, and the flexibility to take this vacation throughout the year, rather than only in the winter. So for example, Sarah and I took our kids, plus 20 more youth, on the Eleven Point River for four days last. week, and Kimby, our farm manager, is in Paris with her family for the next 10 days! Beyond a personal desire to travel, I think this is also a good practice because all of us return to work with renewed energy, enthusiasm, insight, and a better attitude. So if you miss seeing one or two of us sometime at a pickup or pizza night, know that it's probably because we are off seeing the world, but we'll be back better than ever, and that energy is part of what keeps us constantly improving the farm.
This week we've got a bunch of celery for everyone, lots of colored bell peppers, piles of basil, a little sweet corn, and some oddities to try if you want, like sweet potato greens or green tomatoes. Thanks for helping us build a farm that is good for the earth, good for you, and good for the farmers.
Sincerely,
Curtis, Sarah, Kimby, Brandon, and the rest of the crew at Millsap Farm.
