Ah spring flowers...a sign that new life is beginning to emerge from the cool depths and warmer days are right around the corner. When I see these first crocuses right outside our front door I am given a gentle reminder that we are heading out of our quiet, reflective months of winter and running head first into our busy, never-sit-down months of spring and summer.
It is easy to get stressed when you have deadlines and farming is no different from any other job in that respect. When the season starts we have a long list of items that need to be checked off in order for the farm to run smoothly. Every season is different and we are always trying new things and working with different people. These changes are both exciting and daunting and this is the time of year that we do our pre-season brainstorming so we have a good plan in place for when we are tied up with other work.
The other day I was reading a farm blog that I enjoy and the author pointed out the fact that farmers have an entirely different schedule than most people. She made a chart that showed what non-farming families are up to during the seasons of the year. Below her first chart is another illustrating the life of the farmer during those same seasons. Her charts show the farmer busy in the spring and summer and the non-farmer busy in the fall and winter. With less and less people farming it is no wonder why as a nation we are out of touch with natureand natural cycles.
The flowers remind me to relax, take a deep breath and focus on the here and now because like the crocus, the summer does not last forever and even though it is hectic and seemingly undending, we need to enjoy it while it lasts.
Caitlin