Howdy folks! Hey, before I dive into my gleanings from last month- you know, the best agrarian articles, I wanted to direct your attention to a Kickstarter campaign a fellow Reformation Acres reader has going on right now…
Serenity Farms is starting a CSA this year and needs YOUR help! Reading through their campaign and I AM FILLED WITH SUCH RESPECT FOR THEIR VISION!! These guys are truly agricultural reformers! If only there were more farms like this one!!!
So let’s give them a hand and help them kickstart their dream! BUT HURRY! They ONLY HAVE 5 DAYS till their campaign ends!!
Young boys need down-to-earth, truly manly role models that, among other things, work hard at creative and productive work, and enjoy their work.
•13 Things We Need To Learn From Our Ancestors
For many of us our parents, grandparents, or even great grandparents knew how to do things about which we have no idea or no desire to learn. While I can see the argument that we have advanced beyond the need of these basic skills, I respectfully disagree. We don’t have to leave these skills as they are per say, but can modify them to fit our modern lives and be all the better for them. I was extremely blessed in that I not only was able to know my grandparents from both sides, but also had 3 great grandmothers that I was able to meet and get to know. My grandparents were children or young teens during the Great Depression. Their memories of that time shaped their entire lives and how they looked at the things they owned. My great grandmothers were all adults during the Great Depression, so they saw things from a different light as well. I loved all of their stories and the lessons they taught. I am going to try to share a few nuggets of wisdom they taught me.
•Training Children: It Starts with Love
Am I the only mom who wonders if she’s doing it right, reads one author’s parenting method and second guesses everything she’s ever done? There are “new and better” ways right?
•I’m Ready For a Slow Down Revolution
What if we worked toward improving how we feel inside our own skins and inside our own homes–on building lives that we want to live for the rest of our lives–instead of on how quickly we can race toward arbitrary, unsustainable goals?
What if we left our comfort zones in the dust?
What if we slowed down?
The first and most important thing that everyone needs to remember is that for children to understand the natural world and God’s creation they must spend time outdoors. Although good literature, accurate field guides, and the like are important; nothing can replace spending time in the outdoors observing the wonders of creation. Seeing it…feeling it…smelling it….tasting it, these are what matter most. While all people rely on the natural world for food and fiber, our family does so in more direct way than most. We make our living from the land and our work is primarily outdoors. Our jobs and chores ebb and flow with the seasons and the weather. For our family, the outdoor world is not unfamiliar or foreign. It’s more like an old friend. When not working outdoors, we spend our leisure time there as well. Depending on the time of year, we might take off after chores to pick wild blueberries or black caps. We might decide at the spur of the moment to hike into the backwoods and build a camp from scratch, cook up some supper on a cast iron fry pan, and sleep under the stars. In the fall, we scout for fur and set traps. We often just take walks to see what we can see.
I often struggle with balancing the different aspects of the children’s education but maybe it’s simple. Maybe land and dirt and seeds could be added the list of school supplies.
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