Have I reached the mid-life plateau? Evidence abounds. I find that I give myself pep talks to take on even the smallest of tasks. I am deeply drawn to afternoon naps. And no big job is conceivably possible without two cups of strong coffee.
When I reflect on this, I am at times bothered that I don’t have the juice I once did. My 30-year-old self slashed through projects and took on new ones without any thought or worry. I was abusing coffee at that time too, but the energy and determination I had was remarkable. In hindsight, I must also acknowledge that my younger self was a madman. At times a bit too determined, pushing through projects at midnight and ignoring some of the goodness of life with a myopic focus on the work.
Lately I’ve been trying to appreciate the energy others can and have brought to the farm. My daughter I once held in the crook of my left arm now pushes through a full day of work in 90-degree heat. Archer the apprentice speedily packs produce or muscles through pounding stakes for trellis. In times like these, I ease back in the realization that this big rock that needs pushing is not 100% on me. Instead, I have a role to encourage and coach those around me and that seems right for my age. However, I’m not ready to fully recline back and direct the farm from a lawn chair. With the proper dosage of caffeine, I still find it exhilarating to go in the fields and totally crush it! I think that I’ve finally grown wise enough to know when to stop.
In the box:
- Basil
- Greenleaf lettuce: Standard lettuce…not much to say here.
- Bag of Spinach: Use fresh in a salad or cook in a recipe. Me, I make a green smoothie with spinach.
- Radishes
- Garlic Scapes: These are the sprouts that come off the tops of maturing hardneck garlic. Yes, kind of funny looking, but they have a nice mild garlic flavor and you can use wherever you use a green onion as a switch-up. I often sautee a couple before I put into eggs in the morning. You can use in replacement of garlic in the recipe below.
- Swiss Chard: Pardon the look of some of these leaves – we got some tearing in that 70 mph wind last week. See recipe below.
Lida Farm 