planting season

It is late May, which brings one of my favorite seasons - planting season.   While running errands on many of our country back-roads this week, I noticed that every farm I passed has fields prepared for planting and tractors already hard at work.  I saw baby calves staying close to their mamas. This morning I sat on my porch watching a Robin retrieve a beak full of sticks and work hard to build her nest.  Rural Pennsylvania is back in action for another year of agriculture!
 
I am grateful for where I live, it's a steady flow early morning to late evening of the activity of farm life.  Life.  That's it; when Spring arrives the world comes back to life.  Now, for any of you who love the cold and snow, I am quite happy to oblige you, but no thank you... this is the season for me! 
 
Life. Sustained by this tedious practice every spring of planting.  Life.  Dependent on the diligent work of so many people who spent their winter planning seed orders, navigating crop placement, praying that the weather would work in their favor and their equipment will make it... just one more year.  The farmer has faced challenges year after year.  It’s a new year, with different challenges.  This year, it's fuel and fertilizer costs.  Weather has already left her mark on some of the early season fruit trees.  But, our community has to eat, our animals have to eat.  Winter will come again, and we must be ready.   We will be, by the grace of God, we will be.  
 
This season we invite you to the farm once again! We are just weeks away from strawberry season and we have already kicked off our farm market opening with a full line up of educational and engaging activities.  It felt good to open our doors and see your smiling faces, ready to see us too!  
 
This year the barn is getting a fresh coat of paint with a bright new color.  What I am most excited about is our new barn quilt.  Since we visit Ohio often to visit Dan's family, we pass a lot of barn quilts in rural Ohio.   Barn quilts originated with Donna Sue Groves of Adams County, Ohio. Donna is a breast cancer survivor who wanted to do something in honor of her mother, a celebrated quilter, while sprucing up her barn at the same time. In 2001, she painted a wooden square like a traditional quilt block and hung it on her mother’s barn.
 
They are a pattern painted directly on a barn or on a piece of wood, then attached to the barn.  Each one has its own meaning.  Our barn quilt is the "Farmer's Star” and is a representation of our desire to make our neighbors and extended community welcome.  Although in some cases the colors are also symbolic, ours are not.  We chose those colors because we really liked them aesthetically.  Our barn quilt was hand painted by a dear friend, Tiffany McKelvie, whose talents are numerous.   I would love to see more farms and barns in Pennsylvania add a barn quilt so we can establish our own barn quilt tour like is popular in Ohio.  
 
The sun is setting as I write this on my back porch and the dandelions that have turned to seed are literally glowing like night lights all over the field. It's quite a magical sight.  I am always in deep awe of the amazing Creator who gives us these beautiful gifts to enjoy and renews our strength and hope for a new season ahead.
 
Looking forward to your visit soon. 
Warmly, 
dB