Being With Women

This week's Harvest:
Lettuce
Cabbage
Beans
Parsley
Chard
Eggplant
Carrots
Shallots
Zucchini, Summer squash, Patty pan
Cucumbers
Daikon Radish
Basil

Last week, I was talking with Andrea, who has been working with us for a few years now in the flower department. She asked me whether I ever get tired of meeting with brides about their flowers. There will always be difficult jobs; but we rarely meet a "Bride-zilla." And, no I'm not tired of it.



Actually, I love hearing about their plans, learning how they met, finding out what's special to them and their partner, watching as they navigate the negotiations with their own mothers. The time together creates an intimacy that I treasure. When I was a midwife, I felt the same way.



The prenatal and postpartum visits were a treasured time for me. Women would share their fears, confide their secrets. It evoked a sense of mutual trust and respect. The actual birth was the icing on the cake.



 It feels a lot like putting together a bridal bouquet. That's the icing.



It's what that woman will hold onto while she grounds herself in all the emotion of committing herself to marriage. As she is walking down the aisle, being held by her family, and her love is witnessed by all her kindred spirits; her guests; her people, she will maybe find balance in something to hold in her hands. A thing of beauty; something we grew and made for her. When I'm making bouquets for women to hold, I try to be intentional. I try to channel great love and patience into the bouquet. I try to be with that woman. (for those of you vegetable customers who aren't into flowers...Don't feel slighted....I try to channel love into your produce as well).



As we are gearing up to cut flowers from our fields for a wedding, I search out the right blooms for the bridal bouquet. I think about all the care we have placed in the seeds, the transplants, the soil, the planning and the harvesting. I try to approach all these tasks with as much patient intention as possible and it leads me to believe the flowers radiate more energy, more love. I set my choice stems apart from the load of the flowers we cut; my special little stash.




Sometimes, I dwell on the bridal bouquets as I fall asleep, the night before I make them. In the morning, I wake up with a fierce sense of what to go searching for in the garden, the perfect vine or added bit that will finish the arrangement.



Being trusted to be with a woman, either as she births her first or fifth child, or to make her a radiant bouquet to hold while she celebrates her love, is something I never want to take for granted. It's an honor. Being with women.....I'm not tired of that yet. And, I'm certainly not tired of the flowers.




Now that I've spilled my heart out about the flowers.....let's hit a few housekeeping items:
First....we are going to try something new...Floral Design and Garden Study classes. We'll walk the fields, harvest flowers and then I'll show everyone how to put a lovely piece together using our farm-grown cuts. This class will be geared toward folks of all skill levels. If you are a designer with an interest in using more seasonal, local blooms, the garden study piece will appeal to you. If you are new to flowers...this will be a total adventure that will plant a love of flowers squarely into your heart. Come play flower farmer for an evening and celebrate the blooms with us! Summer Study is July 31st, Fall Study is September 11th. Sign up here.



Second...next Tuesday, July 30th, Al Timpson, one of the Scarborugh Land Trust Board members, will be playing music with his band, The Strangely Possibles, Pack a picnic and BYOB. The event is family friendly.



Blessings on the meal-
Stacy