Greg and I were chatting with a friend this week about what it’s really like to own a farm. We were discussing the behind the scenes, real-life experience of living here at Stonecrop Farm that we don’t often talk about.
There are so many overwhelmingly positive aspects of living here on the farm. Constant access to nature and animals, the sense of purpose we feel farming, the fresh air, farm walks, lightning bugs, wild cherries galore…I could go on.
But, like any path in life there are sacrifices too. I think the compromise that has been hardest for both Greg and me to adjust to has been the difficulty of stepping away from the farm.
Have I told you that we both absolutely love to travel? We love to explore new places and cultures and try new cuisines. We’ve traveled solo and together all over the world to incredible places like Madagascar, Tanzania, and Indonesia.
With the farm and our business where it is…leaving is not just complicated, it’s scary. There are animals to feed/water multiple times a day and fences to check and a significant chunk of our savings (our animals!) walking around our fields. If something were to go wrong, it would be devastating to us on sooooo many different levels.
That’s why we are so (SO!) lucky to have a friend like Allie. Allie knows our farm backwards and forwards and is able to take over for us once or twice a year so that we can truly step away.
This week, Greg and I were able to spend 4 whole days together NOT FARMING up in the Adirondacks. We hiked, swam, read our books, and rested our brains and our bodies.
Going on fewer vacations and overseas adventures is a sacrifice that we do miss from time to time. But it makes the trips we do take all the more sweeter and we have our dear friend Allie to thank for this last one.
You Farmers,
Jenney & Greg