Letting Go of the Image

We've all got this idealized picture of farms in our minds- whether it's from Charlotte's Web and the delightful Wilbur or its Slim Sherman's Ranch. We have these ideas that while it is all hard work, it's not hard living.

Both of which are right and wrong. It is hard work, but it's not if you love it. And it is hard living when you don't know what the next day will bring you on the farm. Pile all that together with a world where you truly can't farm anymore, and it makes for one less than romantic view on farming.

We moved to a world where everything is so available and convenient, we no longer value the time and effort someone puts into their craftsmanship or the food they raise. Hell, most kids and adults cannot even name a handful of plants but can name over a hundred brand logos. That's a scary thought!
all to be content.

Copyright: Charlotte Hertlein 2019

I long for the days where we didn't have outrageous taxes, equipment wasn't more than your horse and a good plow, and there wasn't any clock to tell you how to go about your day. Where you were up with the chickens, and down with them too. Where kids stayed home, running amuck on the farm while learning about the important things in life like honesty, hard work, value and where their food comes from. I'm even a fan of gender roles in a sense. However, that is more of a Norse sense than an American one.

Sadly, when we decided that we wanted to keep up with Jones' we forgot to dig up our roots and bring them along with us. We've lost our ability to grow our own food, raise our own meat, raise our own babies, and handle most tasks life throws at us. We've forgotten that more isn't always better, and less can be just enough.

Even in my own house, I struggle against the societal norms to teach my own children (and myself!) that more isn't always better. That what is normal isn't always what we need. That having a little is just enough and that we don't need to have it

That sometimes it isn't want vs need, but instead peace vs. chaos that we have to choose. That maybe that picturesque view is obtainable if we step out of the race and into our own life.