More than Farm Life

            So I have had some messages in my inbox today asking about why I wrote about sitting by the fire, instead of something about farming.  It is simple.  Life on the farm is more than just about farming.  It is about life in general and in some instances the circle of life (no not the Elton John song from the Lion King).  

            So being on a farm isn't necessarily sitting on a hundred acres, it could be sitting on half an acre.  That half an acre could be one of the most lucrative micro-farms in the area.  Life on the farm is about family and watching kids learn and become fascinated with nature.  My two youngest kids love animals and would give their left arms for any animal.  Farm life is about that quality time you spend with your family and animals.  It is about those little moments in life where you have your A Ha moments.  

            Life on the farm is about watching both the birth of an animal and the death of an animal, whether it is for food or from old age.  It is about replenishing the Earth's soil with crop rotation and adding nature's own fertilizer in the mix.  While farm life can be hard and grueling at times; however, it can be most rewarding as well.  

           Remember it is how you choose to make your life, whether you have to overcome adversity or everything is kosher.  Be happy, live life to the fullest, and spend that quality time with the ones or animals you love.  And remember the farm life is about more than just farming.  Take care my friends. 

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Sitting by the Fire

         As a kid growing up, I always enjoyed the time I would sit by the fire no matter whether it was with family, friends, and a group of people from church when we would go camping.  It always brought fun times of story telling and s'mores. I mean who doesn't like a good s'more, I know I still do.  Sitting by the fire was just simple fun.

            Now as an adult, I find myself reflecting more about life when I sit by the fire.  I noticed this change when I was a Specialist in the Army on a recon team sitting in the middle of Ft Hunter Liggett on a very chilly January night.  As everyone would speak it seemed that more times than not we would just stare into the fire and think about stuff, whether it was back home or when we were kids.  And then sitting in a field in Iraq waiting for the Chinooks to come pick us up on a deserted Iraqi Army base.  The whole company sat there talking and reflecting about the brothers we lost on that deployment or what it was going to be like when we got back to the United States.  

             I have made a designated area for my burn pile.  My family will sit there and the kids will make s'mores and tell funny stories. And I catch myself watching the flames dance and flicker into the air. I think about the times when life was carefree as a kid and how I enjoy my time with the kids as they goof around and tell these tall tales.  Life was definitely simpler then.  Sometimes I even catch myself think about what will the future hold and how to deal with certain events of life.  

             So if you have moments where you need to reflect and you just can't seem to do it. The answer is simple: sit by the fire.  Let the dancing of the flames help you reflect and relax.  I guarantee you will be able to reflect, reminisce, and relax.  And heck go ahead and make yourself a good s'more or two. Enjoy my friends.

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