Germinating

I promised myself when I started this blog that I wouldn't let myself fall behind in my writing...and here it is, a month since my last post. I'm going to try to play a bit of catch-up, and hopefully be better about posting more frequently moving forward. I've already learned so much in the month and a half that I've been here, and it's fun to document the progress on the farm!

Our second and third weeks were devoted to more orientation. The farmer training program's curriculum is broken into two-week blocks, with the first three weeks for orientation--dubbed the "germinate" block. With one week of orientation under our belts, we jumped right into farm work in week two. And it was HARD. That Monday was particularly hot, and we did a lot of field work. I was still getting used to being outside working all day, and it really wore me out. So what do you do after a sweaty, dirty day of farming? Go jump in the lake, of course. After our day was done, a few of us headed down to Lake Champlain to cool off. I was too worn out to even get in the water (it was also way too cold for my taste, but not for my friends'), but it felt good to just get my toes in the sand and rest after a long day.

Later that week, a few students from the FTP 2013 class came in to discuss what they're doing now, as graduates of the program. Most of them are farmers or aspiring farmers, but one works for the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) in what sounded like my dream job, with a perfect blend of advocacy work and farmer engagement. I really appreciated his perspective on the value of the education we're getting. As he put it, Burlington is the center of the future of sustainable food systems, and as graduates of this program, we're going to be on the cutting edge of this movement--and maybe a bit radical to boot. He reminded us that farming is a respectable profession, that this work is important, and we shouldn't feel the need to defend our choice to be here. As someone who has gotten one or two sideways glances when I tell people I'm learning to be a farmer, those were encouraging words to hear!

To close out the week, we had a tour and orientation of Bread and Butter Farm, one of the farms we work on as part of our rotations. Corie Pierce, the owner, helped create the FTP and seems to know everything there is to know about small-scale sustainable farming. She is so down to earth and willing to share her knowledge, and is in general just a badass lady. I'm excited to work with her later in the year--and her pasture-raised cows sure seemed happy, too!

We had Friday off that week, as well as the following Monday, for Memorial Day. One of the FTP graduates who had come to talk to us is now running a small one-ish acre farm on his own, so a few of us volunteered to do some work with him Friday afternoon. It was fun to see a new farm in action and hear about his experience getting started--and I think he really appreciated the extra help! Afterwards, after a quick trip to the Cabot Cheese Annex Store (seriously, there is delicious food around every corner in this state), we headed out to Bread and Butter Farm for their famed weekly burger night, which was as delicious and delightful as expected despite the unseasonably cold weather.

My roommate and fellow farmer Isabella and I spent the rest of the long weekend enjoying some local fun. We hit up the Burlington farmers market, hiked nearby Mount Philo, and ate creemees (New England's version of soft serve ice cream) on Saturday, and took a little day trip to Montreal on Sunday. A little under two hours away, the jaunt into Canada was the perfect day trip, and it was actually really nice to be in a big city for the day. We wandered through the charming neighborhoods and beautiful Mount Royal Park and, since it was a Sunday, got to experience "tam tams"--the most massive drum circle/outdoor summer party I have ever seen. Hundreds (thousands?) of people were sprawled though the park, dancing in the drum circles, picnicking, doing yoga, hula hooping--we even saw what looked like some modern-day medieval jousting. You couldn't help but have fun with so much craziness going on around you. And it happens every single Sunday in the summer! Before heading back across the border, we closed out the day with a couple plates of delicious poutine--obviously.

View from Mount Philo. There are seriously no bad views in Vermont.

The next week, we had orientation at our other two rotation farms, the Intervale Community Farm and Half Pint Farm. Both are located in the Intervale, 350 acres of land in Burlington that is the home of a number of independent farms, as well as the Intervale Center, a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening local farms and food systems in Burlington. Later in the week we visited City Market Co-op, the only major grocery store within Burlington and the highest grossing member-owned cooperative in the US (and I'm a proud member!). I was really inspired by their commitment to supporting local farmers, increasing access to and affordability of organic and locally produced foods, and their involvement with programs that give back to the community. It was helpful to discuss marketing to a co-op, as well. After all, what's the point of growing food if you have no one to sell it to? We finished the day with a discussion on access and hunger in Vermont and a trip to the Chittenden County food shelf, which will be the recipient of our excess produce on the farm.

I took Friday off to head back to DC for my 5-year (eek!) Georgetown reunion. Even though I had only been gone for four weeks, as my departure neared, I got increasingly homesick for DC. It was so lovely to be back in the city, and even lovelier to spend the weekend catching up with friends--some of whom I hadn't seen in five years! It was a wonderful weekend spent frolicking on campus, marveling at the fancy new buildings that have been built, participating in reunion activities, reminiscing about college fun, and feeling grateful that I got to spend four years of my life in such a special place. And, to top it off, the 50-year reunion class generously sponsored the 5-year reunion class, so everything was free for us young folk!

I must admit, as I mingled with classmates at our two class parties, I really loved answering the question, "what are you up to now?" I'm fairly certain I'm the only one who answered, "I'm a farmer!" I mentioned to my farmer friends afterwards, it's a little odd how in DC I feel like the hippie farmer girl, but in Burlington I feel like the buttoned-up DC policy wonk. It's funny how where you live can influence your sense of self! Overall, it was a beautiful weekend with beautiful people in a beautiful place. And in a way it felt very pivotal, too: as I said goodbye to old friends and the city I consider home, I found myself--after just a short weekend away--feeling eager to get back to my new home, my new friends, and my new farming life. I'm taking that as a sign that I'm exactly where I'm meant to be...at least for now.

May Georgetown live forever

PS: If you're interested in supporting my organic farming education, please visit my Indiegogo campaign. Thank you for your support!