E-Miscommunicating

I am coming to realize that many who read this blog may not know or have forgotten that I have degrees in Computer Science and that I have a fairly long history of involvement with electronic communications methods.

I have watched the rise (and fall) of newsgroups, discussion boards, blogs and all sorts of social media.  The more things change with these tools, the more they stay the same.  Usually, there is a very short 'golden age' where the people who have found the tool make great use of it.  But, then the tool follows a typical cycle. 

Initially, people begin to flock to the 'latest thing' to reconnect with their friends.  After an initial contact, most participants start getting lazy and begin to share material they did not create - often flooding the channel with item after item after item...  A small subset of people set themselves up to be over-achievers, seeking some sort of stardom by creating content for the platform.  Many of these actively seek approval by getting others share THEIR stuff instead of somebody else's stuff.   "Trolls" appear and start pushing buttons, looking to start conflict (I remember when these were called 'flame wars').  And that often seems to be the only time people get re-motivated to use their own words - when they have a chance to take sides.  Especially if they have a chance to make someone else look or feel bad.

Pretty soon, it's all noise.  And the only things participants seem to want to read are things that are sensationalized or that serve an agenda that is currently at the top of their list.  And the trolls?  They're still out there.  Continuing to fan the flames and sitting back to enjoy the havoc that follows.

Despite all of this, I find myself continuing to seek out ways that I can cultivate words so that they might plant more seeds that grow into something amidst all of the static.  I suppose I could do what everyone else does and let a host of the pre-written messages do the talking for me, but I prefer to write my own words - only periodically grabbing a meme or a quote that I particularly enjoy to supplement what I write.  And I don't normally concern myself about encouraging people to share the things I write.  I guess I prefer to believe that the quality will speak for itself?

Why do you think that is?

First, I prefer to believe that things are always far more complex than we are often willing to admit.  My feelings about anything of substance are often just as complex as the topic itself.  In fact, those feelings may not be fully known to me.  As I consider the words I might want to write, I give myself an opportunity to explore what really matters to me and what I want to know more about.  I provide myself with an opportunity to learn, to change my mind and/or to affirm and refine what I believe.

I cultivate the words so I can grow.

If the words I write were only influenced by what is in my head, then I suspect I would learn nothing new.  So, I look for others who cultivate words and I look for sources that provide facts and support learning.   Often I prefer primary sources and actual studies or the language of bills being proposed in our lawmaking bodies.  Why?  Because I want to learn the facts so I can come to my own conclusions. 

I combine all that with my own observations and then I look at what other people are saying.  I'll admit that sometimes the whole process starts because someone makes a provocative statement and a bunch of people jump on board to "say what they think." But, I work hard to back up before I am tempted to 'engage.'

I took a brief moment today and sampled five different "provocative posts" in social media today.  Each of those posts had a link to some sort of article.  I went to each article and read it.  Then, I read the comments.  It was clear that nine out of ten people who felt it important to post on the topic had NOT read the articles.  They had merely come to their own conclusion based on the often misleading title or provocative statement provided in the post.

I now work for an organization that realizes it has to use social media to get attention for the things it advocates for.  There is a very real tension between trying to find words, phrases and images that are accurate and representative and balancing them with words, phrases and images that will get people to actually pay even a little attention to the problem and the possible solutions.

I wish we had a better forum than social media to communicate - because more often than not - we end up e-miscommunicating using this so-called media.  More and more, I feel that social media is about promoting anti-social behaviors rather than actually connecting people in meaningful ways.

Through all of these iterations of electronic communications, I have always found myself trying to be the peace-maker.  Seeking the common ground and hoping to find ways for a wide range of views to be allowed with a civil discussion rather than name-calling and derogatory comments.  I doggedly seek to make these tools forums for real conversations that build up, rather than tear down.

In each and every instance, I have come away disappointed, disillusioned and very weary of it all.  

And yet, here I am.  Trying again.  Either because I am absurd or I see something in this word that is better than what it is showing right now.  You can decide which it is for yourselves.

So - a new challenge to you, if you use social media.  Read the link before you comment.  Check your facts before you post.  Consider whether you might actually have it in your own personal arsenal the ability to communicate better than an insensitive meme or sharing a post that describes anyone else in derogatory or unflattering terms.  

I think you can do it.  And so can I.

2021 Crops

We are now fairly certain as to what crops we will be growing in 2021, but there are still details to work out - aren't there always?  The general rule for us in 2021 is that we must simplify our crops significantly if we hope to continue growing, doing our off-farm jobs AND raising poultry.  So, without further ado - here's a quick run down on the plan as it stands at this moment in time.

Seed Production

Assuming the contracts come through for us, we are planning on growing out certain crops for seed that will go to Seed Savers.  The combination of our experience growing many of their varieties and our organic certification makes this a logical step if we wish to continue to grow vegetable crops.  

At present, it looks like we will be growing out Black Valentine green beans, Napoleon Sweet bell peppers and we may also grow out Amish melons (cantaloupe).   

Essentially, that means we will have more row feet of one variety of these crops rather than the wide array we have grown in prior years.  This makes it easier for us to manage with fewer labor hours - a key factor in our decision making.  In particular, the harvest becomes concentrated to one event rather than the continuous harvest, clean, pack, deliver cycle that takes a great deal of time.

Other Crops in Bulk

There will be some other crops as well that we will target either for bulk sales, canning/freezing specials for individuals or bulk donations to local food banks.  Some of these were selected because we have a very good history with them, others because they only have a single point of harvest and some because it will help us keep tabs on how we convert our farm to new systems of growing that will hopefully be sustainable with the new labor hours limits we have.

The order for the Red Adirondack and Blue Adirondack potatoes is already in - so we'll have a decent sized crop there.  There will be Waltham Butternuts and there will be Touchstone Gold beets.  We expect to grow onions as well... and there is garlic in the ground already.  And lettuce is something we are quite good at and we will likely grow a fair amount of it.  There will be tomatoes in the high tunnels.

Asparagus is a perennial crop, so that will not go away either.

To put it in perspective, in the past, when we would just grow a "little bit of something" it would take at least 50 row feet - and usually more.  Even now, there will be a definite difference between our "little bit" and what a personal gardener might say is a "little bit."

And The Rest

Our high tunnels and some of the smaller crop space will have more diversity - in part because we want to eat veggies!  It is likely we will have excess of these things, but we will not be growing them with the intent of maintaining sales other than when convenient.  Again, excess could just go to a food bank if that's what works best.

There will be green beans and peas, of course, because we love them both.  There will probably be some cucumbers and zucchini and there will certainly be spinach.  The list here is certainly much more fluid and subject to change.  But, that planning is what January is for!  We'll grow broccoli, romanesco and cauliflower, but it will be nothing like prior years when we would put in successions of 400 broccoli plants at a time.  Perhaps that would change if we got a contract to grow that many for someone - because we are good at broccoli - but there is none forthcoming, so that's where it stands.

Saying Goodbye

This has been a bit difficult because we know we need to say goodbye to a number of vegetable varieties that have served us well for years.  We won't be growing Thelma Sanders Acorn Squash, for example.  And there will be no eggplant at all on the farm next year.  We will focus on a subset of our normal heirloom tomato varieties and we will likely let varieties such as Red Zebra and Green Zebra go.  There won't be turnips and very little kale and we will likely limit our carrots to one "little bit" planting.

Starter Plants 2021

That said, we are willing to start extra plants for those who talk to us ahead of time.  We will not be growing out a whole bunch of extras in hopes of sales.  Instead, we will only grow plants out for people who specifically request that we do so.  So, if you have a request, let us know.

Here's to 2021 - and a new growing season. 

Independent Mail - Postal History Sunday

Welcome to Postal History Sunday!  

I started this week's PHS post more than once and was having a difficult time getting anywhere with it.  I started and stopped on three different topics and just couldn't go much further than loading up an image or two and writing a couple of lines. 

You see, I invite you here to join me as I discuss something I enjoy.  I am hopeful that you will feel comfortable and you will be entertained as you (quite possibly) learn something new or read about something that you might find interesting.  I was forgetting that I should also have some fun with the process.  This is a chance for me (and you) to decompress a little.  So, let's see if I can manage that.

Things I Never Thought I'd See

As a young stamp collector, I remember seeing pictures of items that were interesting - but far beyond what I could ever hope to own.  Part of the issue was that I was a typical young collector in that I wanted everything.  It was exciting and interesting to explore everything you could possibly find in the hobby.  The other problem, of course, was that spending 25 cents for one item was a big deal. 

There were a few pictures of older (and more valuable than 25 cents) stamps in the beginner stamp albums most kids worked with.  Things like the "Black Jack," a United Stamps issue of 1863 that shows an over-large representation of Andrew Jackson.  

You can imagine how I felt when I finally was able to have one of these in my own collection years later.

I recently had the opportunity to acquire another such item and I thought I would share that with you today.

The Pile of Envelopes Stamp

Another very odd item that got my attention early was this octagon-shaped design that depicted a pile of letters.  You see, most of the older stamps showed a bunch of "old dead guys" and here was something that was very different from other stamps that were created in the 1800s to pay for mail.

No, the item shown above is not mine.  I just grabbed this image from a presentation file I have on the topic of this particular issue so I could illustrate the design.

Over the years, as I started paying attention to postal history (instead of just the stamps) I began to realize that this was probably not something I was going to add to my collection.  Pieces of mail with this stamp just didn't show up all that often, and when they did...   Well, my budget was going to go elsewhere for the hobby.

But, this December, there was an auction of material being offered where there was not just one, but hundreds of lots featuring this design.  One individual had been accumulating and studying these for some time, ultimately writing the definitive work on the topic (an excellent work by Michael Gutman).  The time had come for him to part with the collection - which meant there was actually an opportunity for me to *maybe* pick one up at a price I could afford.  After all, this was an advantageous supply vs demand situation.  The supply of these stamps on letters available for purchase was probably going to never be higher and the demand was not sufficient to keep prices high.

Long story short - I was able to pick one up!

Hale and Company - Independent Mail Company

James W. Hale created a network of private post offices and mail delivery routes in 1843 centered around New York and Boston.  Hale had this stamp design created in 1844, printing them in sheets of twenty.  Patrons could purchase a single stamp for 6 cents, which would pay for mail service between Hale's offices.  To encourage repeat business, a person could buy a whole sheet of 20 stamps for one dollar (5 cents per stamp).  

To put this in perspective, the first United States Postal Service stamp was issued in 1847.  The British had issued their first stamp in 1840.  Printing stamps to show payment for services was still a very new thing and Hale was very much on the forefront of this innovation.

Below is the item I was able to acquire for my own collection.  All I was looking for was a presentable example.  I was perfectly happy to let others bid on the host of other items with more 'going for them.'

This folded letter was sent by Susan G Spooner of New Bedford, Massachusetts to Augustus H Gardner in Boston on July 12, 1844.  The blue stamp with the "NB" pen marking showed payment for the 6 cents required to get the letter from New Bedford to Boston.  It did NOT pay for delivery directly to Mr. Gardner.  It is likely that it was picked up at the Hale & Company offices in Boston.

The distance traveled was a little over 50 miles, so a similar letter sent via the US Postal Services of the time would have been 10 cents (for distances over 30 miles and up to 80 miles).  A four cent difference (and perhaps 5 cents if Ms. Spooner bought a whole sheet of stamps) was not inconsiderable in 1844.

While a person could certainly write in much more detail about Hale & Company, I'm going to keep it short - which would be in keeping with the relatively short period that these stamps were used to show payment for carriage by Hale's independent mails.  Congress passed new laws that were enacted on July 1, 1845 that reduced postage to 5 cents for distances up to 300 miles and made it unlawful for alternate postal services to operate as Hale's had done. 

A Run-On Letter

The entire letter is present, with a couple of holes that make it hard to read a few words.  Apparently Susan Spooner wrote as she talked and she randomly applied punctuation as it suited her taste.  I have added some punctuation to increase readability... I think.  Feel free to click on the image below to get a taste of what the letter is like.

----------------Letter transcript--------------------

New Bedford.  July 12 1844

My dear Augustus:
It is so warm today that I cannot settle myself down to any regular employment, and am going to throw myself upon your kindness whilst I indulge in a short tete-a-tete with your humble self.  Although I have not yet received an answer to my last epistle which was sent just two weeks ago this day.  But I suppose every moment of your time is occupied in your studies, as your final examination comes off next month.  Tell me what day so that my thoughts may be with you, if I am not there in proper persona.  "The Ship" has at last arrived, but where we shall start on our journey is yet quite uncertain.  It may possibly be week after next.  The route which we now propose going is first to Boston, thence to Springfield, Hartford and then toward adjoining down the Connecticut to New York.  Then, up the Hudson to West Point and Saratoga Springs, perhaps to Niagara.  Though we have not decided on that yet ??? it be delightful.  I wish you could be of the party.  Our stay in Boston will be very short, which I shall very much regret as I always enjoy myself so much there, or I should say I have of late, but I hope you will come and see us.  Remember that when you get to New York that it will a much longer time that we shall not see each other than it is now.  And do you (know) that is now nearly eight months?  But I suppose that time with you passes very swiftly you have so much to do that you sometimes forget that you have a friend in New Bedford until she forces herself upon your memory by a letter.
     Be that as it may she would very much prefer intruding herself into your presence and having a real old fashioned talk.  Why I should talk you blind in half an hour.  I have so much to say and so many questions to ask you so you had better be preparing yourself for my visit.
     Mr Tarbell has been making us a visit.  He arrived in town last Friday and left on Tuesday and what do you think, he did not call on me until the day he left.  Isn't it melancholy?  But I think I know the reason why he did not come before and I think to he knows what I thought of his calling at to late an hour.  He will not trouble me much more.  I met him at a party the evening he came and he seemed delighted to see me.  And afterwards I met him at a dancing party and we danced and waltzed together and were very good friends.  He acted very strangely for there was no consistency in his doings.  I guess he is an odd fellow.  He told me that he liked New Bedford so much that he was coming down to spend the month of August.  What an honor he is conferring upon us.  I hope we shall be able to appreciate it.  Mr. Currier has left ?? and gone on to one of the wharves??  I was very glad to hear it for it seems to me rather small?? business, a man of his years.  Clerk in a dry goods establishment.  How unlike he and Tarbell are, but I believe they are neither of them great favourites of yours, so I will say no more about them only that if you knew Mr. C you could not help liking him or else you would be unlike every one else who has his acquaintance.  I mean gentlemen of course.
     Do you know that is just a year this month that I was in Boston and that our acquaintance commenced which has now ripened with friendship.  Had you told me then that a year from that time I should be writing you I should have thought it the most absurd thing possible as you know what my views on that subject was then.  But I have cause to be truly grateful that I have overcome those foolish notions.  My enjoyment has been so great ?? in receiving your kind letters which are always filled with entertaining matter and kind feelings that it seems to me, without them time would have passed on leaden wings.  I ?? that I fully appreciate your kindness and wish that I was more worthy of them but you know we are never satisfied so I have a new request to make. which is that you keep a journal and send it o me every Saturday with a postscript..... I shall expect one next Saturday.  Send it by Hale & Co's Independent Mail, which I shall patronize altogether.
    Your friend ??? Shepherd I met at a party this week.  She was looking very pretty.  I thought of you and wanted to ask her some questions about you but did not dare to as I am but slightly acquainted with her.  I am sorry to say that she is carrying on a great flirtation with a Mr. Williams of ? town.  You had better be looking after her.  Young girls that have too much beauty as she has it is dangerous to leave them.  Have you seen any of the Dr's family lately?  I should like to see Sophia, she is a disappointed woman.  Her situation in life and everything is so entirely different from what she wished that I pity her very much.  How can she be happy with such a husband?  Why I should rather be buried alive than live with such a man.  He is so cold and forbidding in his manners that there is no pleasure in his society.  I should very much prefer that my husband should be ? fond of society than be as he is.  But I have no patience to talk about this so I will stop now and begin to think a little more of you so as not to quite exhaust your patience as I fear it will be if I make this poor apology for a letter much longer. 
     Do write me soon for it seems an age since I heard from you and besides if we start on our journey as soon as we expect to I shall write you a third letter before hearing from you.  I will take that back for I don't think I should if you could not write me I should not think that you would care about knowing of my being in B (oston) so it depends upon you whether you receive that intelligence.
And now believe me sincerely . your friend. Susan

Susan G Spooner to Augustus H Gardener
dated  July 12, 1844
rec'd July 13th
Ans(wered) 31st

-----------------------------------------

Augustus appears to have written (as a docket on the letter) the pertinent dates for this correspondence, which was a common practice for the time.   Perhaps we shall never know if Susan took it poorly that Augustus waited over two weeks to respond to her letter.  Did she meet him in Boston?  Was he, perhaps, more interested in his flirtatious, pretty friend who appeared to be attracted to Mr. Williams?  Or maybe, he was just busy trying to pass his exams.

I hope you enjoyed today's entry in the Postal History Sunday archives.  Be well everyone!

Novemberisms

We continue with our 2020 review with our November posts that were selected by the 'editorial staff' at the Genuine Faux Farm.  We hope that you are enjoying this opportunity to catch up by reading some of the material we think was some of our best for the year.  Or - if you already enjoyed them once, you can go back and re-read a favorite.  OR - at the very least you can chuckle or admire the short excerpts we selected for each post.

Yes, I know.  "Admire" just might be a bit strong of a word choice there.  But, I really WANTED to include the word "admire" in one of my posts this week.  Now I have to write a whole post using the word "admire" in it to make up for this bit of over-reach!

We'll start you out with a post where we mused a bit about people's tendency to take 'selfies' and our tendency to take... well... whatever it is we do.

Selfie-ish  - You see, our selfies tend to turn out this way.  Someone told me we get them "ALL WRONG" and mentioned something about pointing the camera the wrong way.   I of course, think they're just goofy.  How can you see what you're taking a picture of if you point the camera the other way?   That's just silliness, you know!

November hosts Thanksgiving.  We like Thanksgiving because it reminds us to reflect and be grateful for all that we have experienced.  It shouldn't be a shock that some of our best November posts head that direction!

Gentle Reminder - We are the helpers.  We are placed where we are most needed.  Even when we are feeling lost or hopeless, we know that we will do what it takes to aid those who need it.

What I've Learned About Giving Thanks  - I think it is mistake to think that miracles are something that happen TO us.  Instead, I think we might be better off if we consider miracles something we plant and nurture until they reach their full power and strength.  

November is also election month, which brings about no small amount of introspection from the farmer.  That, and our farming season really starts to shut down and we start to really think about where we have been and where we are going. 

Missing: Teamwork - Building a life is a long game - but sometimes we need some shorter games to help us see progress.

Echo Chamber - I pull the door open on its slides, revealing a dark room that smells of old hay and dirt.  The door rolls shut behind me and I am alone.  When I speak, I hear only myself or things that sound like me.  There are whispers that encourage me to be my worst self. 

And sometimes, there are blog posts that are a bit more personal in nature.  It seems that some people find these more entertaining than many of my other efforts.  This is a good thing - because it encourages me to offer up a diverse set of things.  And, you all know how much we like diversity on our farm!

Quiet - Anyway, there are some things that seem to be true for most of us - I can't be sure of this, because we don't talk together to compare notes ( Hey.  That was an 'introvert joke.'  If you are an introvert you may now indulge in a quiet inner smile.  If you are not, you may continue to be confused.)

Morning to Twilight - Our first bookshelves were hand made... by us...  with a hammer, a handsaw and a little sandpaper.  The wood was some slightly bowed pine and we had a box of nails.  Let's just say it wasn't fine furniture once we had completed the task.  We had to put one in the corner and the other next to an old desk so they wouldn't fall over.  

 --------------AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION----------

Thank you for reading!  Once again, if you are so inclined - tell me which of these November posts were your favorite.  While you are at it - which of the pictures shown on this blog do you like best?  If you are not, that is also fine.  I just hope you enjoyed a quick "look in the mirror."

Check Your Buts

I have spent a great deal of time writing over the past nine or so months.  I have become more aware of writing patterns I indulge in - both the good and the bad.  One habit I think I will wean myself from is use of the word "but."  

No, no.  It has nothing to do with how easy it is to add another "t" on the end so we can all giggle about a stupid anatomy joke.  No, it's not because it isn't a useful word.  After all, I tend to use in my writing to illustrate how I often see more than one side to things.  (note, I use "after all" too much.... ugh!)

I am beginning to get even more offended with "but" because so many people are using it in this fashion:

"I know X is wrong, but....."

We should all just stop at "X is wrong."  Or, if you want, you can explain why you think "X is wrong."  When you add "but" you are implying that YOU are able to justify an exception for yourself or someone with whom you feel you have an alliance.

Once the "but" enters the sentence that should set off alarm bells in all of our heads that we should really carefully inspect our motivations and our sense of right and wrong.  Is it possible that a perfectly valid exception exists?  Sure.  However, you might want to reconsider your condemnation of others who ALSO seem to have found an exception to the rule.  It's pretty difficult to claim moral high ground when you're neck-deep in the quicksand yourself.

Then again - maybe that's all the better any of us can do?  That's a sobering and depressing thought.

The other place I am hearing lots of buts?  It's the same form, but with a slight twist:

"When X did this, it was wrong, but what about when Y did this?"

Again.  Stop at "When X did this, it was wrong."  If it was wrong, it was wrong.  You do no favors if you legitimize any bad behavior by trying to put the focus anywhere other than the bad behavior you feel you need to be calling out.

What are we?  Five year olds?  

"Don't blame me Mom!  He/she did it FIRST!"

And therefore, it's not as bad?  Address your problem first because you should have more control over that.   Or perhaps you actually do believe you own the exception to the rule.   It's bad unless one of you or yours does it? 

Why am I so upset?

It's simple.  I know, like and care for people who have vastly different ideas about what is important in the world.  And, I am witnessing more and more of them forgetting to check their 'buts.'  Maybe some of your read this?  Perhaps this will let you know that I care about you, but I am disappointed and unhappy?  

Do I expect too much of others?  I don't think so.  I actually hold you in more esteem than you know - which is why I say something.

Do I expect too much of myself?  Probably.  I've been trying to check my buts for several months now and I still fall down.  I struggle with this just like everyone else.  That is exactly the point - I am struggling because I want to be better.  Come struggle with me.

Hey - you folks who believe in personal responsibility - spend more time cleaning your own house and set a better example.  Hey - those of you who believe that we need to be more inclusive and sympathetic to all sorts of people - time to offer more grace to those you may not agree with and may not like.

And while you're at it.  Check your "buts" at the door.

Ashamed

For the first time in many, many days - I am nearly at a loss as to what to put in the blog.

It seems that what I write and what I say has no power and no value.  While I agree that I have limits and I am not perfect - I'd like to think messages that encourage learning, critical thought, compassion, kindness, tolerance and balance have some value.  I'd like to believe that people see that you can seek for health and healing while also showing concern for others and lifting people up who need help.  I feel, right now, that I must be wrong.

Instead, it seems that too many have decided that they will listen to an outgoing president and a host of unqualified pundits and self-serving individuals who favor none of these things.  I am particularly upset with them because they have power - eyes and ears are on them - and they have deliberately misled, repeating words that promote unrest, making accusations without specifics or appropriate evidence, and calling into question the efforts of many, many hard-working people who have spent life-times developing their skills to do the work that they do.

Then, there are others who have an agenda and they don't care how they accomplish that agenda.  They have decided their cause is righteous and beyond reproach - which means you can do anything to anyone to get what you want.  They no longer think they have to examine their motives and their intent - so it is okay if they destroy all that is in their path.

And, I am angered by those who take advantage of uncertainty with their scams and their ploys - sewing uncertainty to line their own pockets.

I am angry at these individuals because they are hurting a nation I love and the people I love more.

I see why they do it this way - with partial truths and untruths, threats and deception.  It is apparently because they don't see how they can win what they want based on merit.  I understand why they use bluster and threat of violence because those who would be peaceful and negotiate are given no space to make a difference.  They soil the very ideals they claim to uphold by implying their insufficiency.

I am angry because they all should know better and I suspect many of them do - but they choose to ignore that and do what they do anyway.  And if they do not know better, then more of us should recognize that they don't and stop giving them power.

But, then, I realize some of this anger is because I am ashamed.

I am ashamed of me - because I have not done enough, not said things the right way or at the right time and not found the way forward.  I don't make enough of a difference.  Period.

I am ashamed of all of us - because we let this nation come to this.  No.  We encouraged this nation to come to this with our intolerance, our greed, our willingness to believe the worst of people and our sheer laziness - because we can't be bothered to look hard at things we don't already agree with - and because we all think we know better - even when we don't.  How could we possibly know better when we so readily allow ourselves to be swayed by the unqualified - by the shysters - by those whose statements cannot be verified by fact, but only by looking at their own echo chamber where they reference themselves as proof.

I am ashamed because the dark clouds on the horizon did not hide their presence.  They were in plain sight for all to see.  We even witnessed the power of the storm as it approached.  Yet we did nothing to stop it - we even pretended it was not there.

I am ashamed because we allow the repetition of partial truth and untruth to become part of our stories that we tell ourselves and we don't bother to do more than that.  I am ashamed because we are so quick to assume the worst and so unwilling to find the good.  I am ashamed because we are so willing to become self-righteous and indignant even before we can truthfully say we actually know what we are talking about.

And, I am ashamed because we're all too willing to hide in our comfortable lives and judge someone else's discomfort as a deficiency.  Until we become uncomfortable - and suddenly behaving badly is ok - for us - but not them.

But, in the end.  I am ashamed because I don't know what to do and I'm not sure I have the words to say what needs to be said.  I am ashamed because I doubt that my effort matters much - yet what little impact I might have, I fear I may have squandered it.

I am ashamed, yet I am not entirely certain what I should have done.  I only know it should have been more.   Even if it was just working harder to figure out exactly what it was that I should be doing.

Despite all of the reasons that point to the fact that this was not under my control, I remain - ashamed.  I could have done more.  And, I didn't.

Attack Cardinals and Angry Roosters

It has been two years (yikes!) since Tammy and I took our great adventure to the island of Kauai and I was digging through the 'draft' posts in the blog that are waiting for completion and found an early post that just did not get put out there.  I thought it might be fun to flesh it out a little.

Cardinal vs Rear-View Mirror
Our first location in Kalaheo was a small cottage in town.  One of the biggest selling points for us was the kitchen, since we did not intend on eating every meal 'out.'  After all, that's a quick way to require a shorter vacation from a budget perspective!

The first morning, we kept hearing a tapping sound that seemed to be coming from just outside the cottage.  It took us a while to figure it out (see the photo below).

For some reason, this female cardinal decided the rear view mirrors on the rental car were evil!  I know that it was seeing itself in the mirror and thought it had to defend against an intruder.  But, geez, didn't you have to get yourself into just the right spot to see the offending critter so you could attack it?  We're kind of wondering how this bird knew if it had won or not.

Of course, you might also want to wonder why there is a cardinal on Kauai.  There are, actually a number of birds that came to the island with human 'help.'  Sadly, many of the birds native to the islands are scarce or extinct.  But, that doesn't mean we blame this cardinal - nor were we sad to see it.

Other 'out of place' wild-life we saw were Meadowlarks and Tiger Swallowtails.  These are two critters we would welcome on our farm, but we had to go to Kauai, where they are not native, to see them.  Once again, we were happy to see them - but a bit disturbed by how humans make native habitats less hospitable for natural populations.

Shelobs galore

We were actually surprised by how few spiders there are on the island - and we were also a bit surprised by the relatively low population of invertebrates, their food source.  Nonetheless, our first location featured a few very nice webs created by orb-weavers that looked very much like the "Shelob's" we welcome on the farm.  

Once again, I was a little disturbed by the fact that I found more orb-weavers in Kauai than we've seen in recent years on our farm.  We haven't seen them on the farm since 2012, when our farm had a fly-over spray incident.  It makes me wonder if I should import a couple of orb-weavers from someone else's farm to repopulate ours.

It's clear to me that I shouldn't have to fly over the Pacific Ocean to a small island to see some of the wildlife that should love the Genuine Faux Farm!

Angry Roosters and Swift Sunrises/Sunsets

The words "Oh look!  A rooster." - with no small amount of emphasis on the ridiculousness of the situation - escaped our lips multiple times.  Kauai has a thriving population of what some people call 'feral chickens,' while others refer to them as 'red junglefowl.'  The first junglefowl were brought to the island by Polynesians about 800 years ago and more European strains came after Captain Cook found the islands in the 1700s.  Things got even more interesting when a couple of hurricanes freed many of the domesticated (and contained) flocks in 1982 and 1992.  Scientists find it to be an interesting study of genealogy.  

Also note - chickens do cross the road in Kauai.

Unlike many tourists, we were not terribly impressed by the chickens.  I mean - we went there to get AWAY from the farm for a while.  The other thing to note is that chickens on Kauai seem to know that it is 5 AM (at least they do at Koke'e State Park).  And they ALL crow at exactly the same time.  Especially the one that has taken up a post right next the window of the cabin you are staying in at the time.

Speaking of mornings and evenings (we were?), sunrise and sunset on Kauai can be pretty quick.  In Iowa we are used to a bit more twilit skies - often lasting quite a while during the longest days and shortest days of the year.  That's probably why the chickens of Kauai start before there is some light.  They've slept enough and just want to tell you it's still an hour until the sun pops up.

While temperatures have been pretty moderate so far this Winter, we figure talk of a warmer clime is not an all bad thing for a January blog post.  We hope you enjoyed it and we hope you have a great day.

Octoberfest

You will see better why I had trouble trying to come up with a top-ten countdown for best blog posts of 2020 as I present the editor/writer selections for October of 2020.  Yes.  Just October.  And I had a tough time cutting this month down to ten.  In fact, I didn't manage it, there are eleven here.

Part of the reason for the difficulty is that October was apparently a creative month - with all sorts of topics and perspectives.  I mean - it's got to be a good blog month if you have not one, but TWO posts with Crazy Maurice! 

Crazy Maurice's Monarchy - We were talking about the little fluttery things that can't seem to fly straight.  He called the orange and black ones "Monarchs," but I like calling them "little fluttery things that can't fly straight and occasionally glide, love flowers, and roost in tree limbs at night, sometimes tickling the host tree..." (note, there was more to this name - Fuzzy Guy).

But It Wasn't Funny - But, occasionally, I get to hear the whispered conversations of my elders - the Burr Oaks on the southern part of this farm.  I have learned that, when they talk - I should listen.  And, when I listen, I have to be prepared to listen for a while.  I mean - they are kind of... well... deliberate.   That's a new word the Fuzzy Guy taught me this year when I tried to explain it to him.  I like that word.  And that's not an accident.

And another thing that got people's attention and apparently inspired me to write was baseball - or more accurately, my participation in the sport.  Each of the following made some connection to the sport I loved to play (and wish I could still play).

Ever the Observer -  But, it is fair to say that I was ever the observer.  While I was rarely pushing to be first in line to do things and I even more rarely wanted to try something new with any kind of an audience, I picked up far more than most kids by simply watching.  Watching and picking up the lessons that came with observation.

Backing Up First Base - We have all got our tasks that are very much like a right fielder backing up first.  It's not glamorous.  It's rarely recognized.  In fact, it may not seem necessary much of the time.  But, when it is needed, it is needed.  And when it is missing at a time when it is needed, we all notice.

Why Leadership Matters - With no small amount of glee, he told the scorekeeper to award me with an error rather than give a hit to the batter.  The message?  You've done great and I see that - and I know you can do even better!  And I believed it.  

Everyone seems to love it when the critters on the farm take center stage in one fashion or the other.  Would you believe that our poultry encouraged a spoof of Shakespeare - among other things?  And, anytime you can catch a bee midflight in a photo - you have to feature it.

Henlet, A Sililoquy -  

To lay, or not to lay, that is the question:

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the double yolk misfortune

or to add to the farms troubles, by pecking end them.

Turkey Smiles - "Oh look!" I said to myself.  "The turkeys are visiting Crazy Maurice.  I should take a picture of that."

Feeding Workers All Season - You see, the pollinators don't see the world the same way we do.  What looks like a tangled mess to us is a beautiful buffet to some of them.  It's a place that our bumbling human feet and bodies don't go to trample them as they do what they do.

The month even included a look back at one of my all time favorite posts (which I will not link here as it did not technically qualify).  There was a local foods post or two and even a reminder to us all to appreciate where we are - right now.

Impersonal -  Folks, your local farmers are often doing things to show their personal side - and you reward them with the most impersonal and the least useful support you can give - because hitting a "like" button is incredibly easy - and means so very little in the end.  What means more are personal recommendations for a product and, more important, your own patronage.

That's Not Orange -  Quadrato Asti Giallo peppers.  They are an heirloom bell pepper from Italy.  Isn't the name great?!?  You know what it means in Italian?  Quadrato means "square" and Giallo is "yellow."  Let's just stop there and just sound impressive when we say the Italian name!

Around the Bend - Would we remember to look carefully at where we are now and appreciate things like the texture of bark, the smell of leaves and the rustle of sound as a small creature darts around in the brush?  Or will we focus too hard on our destination - the area after we turn that bend in the path?

--------------AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION----------

Thank you for reading!  If you are so inclined - tell me which of these October posts were your favorite.  While you are at it - which of the pictures shown on this blog do you like best?

GFF 2020 Report Card - full year edition

Back in August, we gave grades to the Genuine Faux Farm (ourselves) for how they were doing a bit more than halfway through 2020.  Several people found it interesting and a couple even wondered if we would revisit this at the end of the year.  Apparently, the answer is 'yes.'

Here we are, only a few days into the new year and we're still trying to figure out what happened to us in the previous year.  Well - ok, that's the negative way of framing it.  The positive way is to remember that we can learn from what has gone before and it can help to inform us to improve as we go forward.  

With that in mind - here are our final grades for 2020 at the Genuine Faux Farm.  The midterm grade we gave ourselves in early August is in each heading. 

Handling the Water (B- at midterm)

So, here's the deal.  We dug some ditches/swales early in the season.  It rained like it has so many seasons in the last decade and the swales were tested.  Then, suddenly, the rains pretty much came to a stop.

In all honestly, it was a welcome relief to us at the farm - especially when you consider that we did get just enough rain here to keep things green through the entire Summer and Fall.  We've been so wet for so long, this was just wonderful.

What it did not do is test the swales further, which is just fine with us.  The early rains highlighted how the water flow was going to change with our efforts so we can continue to work to address that.  In a way, it was better that we ended up doing this in stages so we could assess how each set of changes impact the farm.  We have addressed some next steps, so hopefully we continue to make progress.  

After all, we know better than to think excessive rains won't come back to haunt us yet again.  That would be naive.  

But, for 2020, circumstances worked in our favor and helped us raise our grade:  B

Supporting the Pollinators (B+ at midterm)

We have always done a decent job of supporting pollinators at the farm, so we set this bar very high for ourselves.  In some ways, it is easier for us to assess pollinator health by watching our own honey bee hives, which did quite well this year.  

Our observations for the season were that we had more bird traffic, more smaller bees and a decent variety of insects and invertebrates.  On the other hand, butterflies and bumblebees were extremely scarce despite planting many things we know they like (from past experience).  We know that is not entirely our fault because there just needs to be more general support for these critters beyond what one 15 acre farm can provide.

Our timing for clover mowing and selection to allow asters to bloom was right on target to feed our pollinators through the fall months. 

The overall population decline might be beyond our control, but we did well with what we could control:  A- 

Dealing with Reduced Labor Hours (C- at midterm)

This would be akin to the hardest class in a major course of study.  The easiest way to pass is to somehow create more than 24 hours in a day AND be able to stay awake long enough to take advantage of them.  Since we couldn't do that, we had to try to milk all we could out of the resources we had and still stay healthy and sane.

The answer to the problem was to say "no" to putting in our normal batch of Fall crops this time around.  We did not particularly care for this solution, but it was actually the right direction.  Next year, I expect we will say yes to a batch of Fall and Winter crops, but they are going to be very different than they have been.

In the end, we pass the course by recognizing that we just need to change the goals to match the available resources.  We can still strive to excel, but that will mean something different in the future.  

We get a much better grade for learning enough to recognize where the solution was, even if we didn't get the details right: B-

Managing a New Sales System (C+ at midterm)

It was a good idea, but it probably won't be the right idea for the future.  The delivery approach was spot on, the tracking was not.  Not much more to say about it: C-

Further Refinements in Poultry (B+ at midterm)

At the point we gave the midterm, we still weren't sure where things were going to go with the new hens, with the turkeys or with the second batch of broilers - so there was a great deal that could change things.

Dealing with poultry requires dedication and some work.  The good news is that it requires a certain amount of work, every day.  But, except for a few key points in time, it does not require work ALL DAY LONG every day.  That means poultry actually worked better with our new work loads than growing produce did.  This is also a reflection of a system that continues to improve for our poultry at the Genuine Faux Farm.

We were prepared to back off of poultry in coming seasons but now we find that perhaps this is the part that works best with the new realities.  So, now we're looking at a few more tweaks and a continuation in 2021?  

We shall see, but this year went about as good as we could make it: A

Farmer Mental Health (A for effort at midterm)

This is always a hard thing to judge - especially when you are involved in things such as education and.. farming.  One day you can feel great and the next, not so great.  

The effort was there, just as we noted with the midterm "grade," but the stress of the Fall school term on top of everything else was pretty rough.  An A for effort and a C for actual results gives us a B- for the year.

Reviving the Farm Grounds and Plantings (I at midterm)

We're just going to leave it at an incomplete.  We took too many courses this year and we knew it.  Incomplete.

Making the Farmhouse a Positive Rather than a Negative (A- at midterm)

While we had higher goals for this than we accomplished, we did manage a second wind towards the end of the year and got a few more things done that needed doing.  We've actually done more talking about some things "normal people" do - like what color we want to paint some of the rooms in the house.  On the other hand, there are still some uncompleted tasks - which means we don't get an A.  Instead, the whole year balances out to a B+

Vegetable Crops (C- at midterm)

There were some definite wins and some definite losses.  Sounds a good deal like every season at the Genuine Faux Farm.  But, one thing I noticed is that we rarely had to say 'no' to orders we received when we offered vegetables to those who had farm credits.  We put up about as much veggies as we were able to given the time we had so we had some to eat in the winter months.  Rob got eat some fresh green beans in early November.  That's always a win in our book.

So, we met the demand that we had for the veggies we successfully grew.  We'll just leave it where it was in August: C  

Giving Through Writing (A- at midterm)

The second half of the year probably held some of the best writing - practice makes perfect, I guess.  The Postal History Sunday series got a foothold and found a number of people who simply enjoyed them for what they were.  Suddenly I had a batch of Pesticide Action Network blogs that I had written that I felt were ok to cross post and widen the audience perhaps a little bit.  I let myself look at some older posts and edit and renew them for a new look so they would not languish in the dark halls of history for a time.

This went well.  I think it was a positive for me and a positive for many who bothered to read them.  As a teacher, I did not give an A lightly.  I find the same holds true here.  A

Extra Credit

What?  You want extra credit?  If you had just done the work when it was due, you wouldn't be in this situation now, would you?

Have a great day everyone!  We hope we select the best classes for 2021 and that we can put forth our best efforts.  Since it is only January 4, we still have the perfect 4.0 grade average in sight!

Tell 'em Where to Go - Postal History Sunday

Welcome to the first Postal History Sunday of 2021!  We hope you take the opportunity to enjoy learning something new - or at least you like to be entertained by a person who thoroughly enjoys their hobby.  Either way, this isn't a half bad way to spend a few moments of your day.

So, let's get to it!

What's a "Docket?"

Postal historians and postal history collectors often reference docketing on various mail pieces, which can take various forms.  Docketing would be some sort of handwriting on the letter or piece of mail that either provides record-keeping functions for the recipient OR directives for the postal services.

 For example, the item above shows lots and LOTS of docketing.  

The writing that runs sideways on the left side of the envelope would be filing notes by the recipient.  George Atkinson, Esq, a lawyer by trade, probably did what many at the time did - they filed documents and stored them in the envelope they came in.  To provide for easy reference, they recorded the date and origin of the contents, a brief summary AND the date the letter was received in their office (May 9, 1866).  It just so happens this date matches the London marking showing in red towards the top.

This method of filing is part of the reason postal historians have as much material to collect as they do.  It also explains why many of the same addressees keep showing up on these pieces of mail.

The other handwriting on the front of this letter includes the address AND some directional docketing at the lower left.  This docket reads:

"per Cunard Steamer Asia from Boston April 25"

At least - that's what the writer was hoping when they mailed the letter.  It turns out - if you read the New York marking in red at the right side - that it left New York on April 28 on a steamer that was NOT the Asia.  We'll get back to that in a bit!

Success and Failure in Directional Dockets

If you look long enough, you can find all kinds of docketing on the mail that clearly were meant to try to direct the post office with varying degrees of success.  Take the item below for example.

The docket "per Steamer" at the top left could have meant one of three things. 

1. There was more than one option for mail to go from Worcester to Boston
2. The writer thought there was some other option than a steamship to cross the Atlantic
3. The writer just wanted to write "per Steamer" on the envelope

I can tell you that Worcester, Mass is just west of Boston and there are no streams that would have had steamers plying between the two locations.  I am pretty certain a train or a coach carried the letter to the Boston foreign mail office.  I am ALSO quite certain that the letter rode on a steamship (a Cunard Line ship) to cross the Atlantic.  In fact, there really wasn't another way that mail would do so at the time.  So, you could argue that the person who wrote this wasted ink on the docket.

In their defense, it had not been that many years that steamships were the primary mode of transportation across the seas.  The person writing could very well still remember the days that most ships went by sail, not steam engine.  They might even have experienced a time when you would WANT to indicate that you wanted it to go by a steamship rather than one that went under sail and you had to say so on your letter.

The item below, shows some successful direction given by a docket:

The words "via Panama" very clearly directed the post office in San Francisco to put it on a steamer that would go down the coast to Panama.  The letter then would go overland at the isthmus and then board another steamer to New York on the eastern shore of the isthmus.  There was, in fact, another alternative since overland routes were now in use from California.  By 1863, most letter mail went overland by default.  So, if a letter writer preferred the steamship via Panama, they had to indicate that preference as this person did here.

The question is, of course, "why did this person want this to go on the slower route?"  We may never know this answer for certain.  But, perhaps the sender had heard enough about mail coach robberies that they did not want to risk that with this mail item?  Maybe there was a known weather issue that was going to delay overland mail?  Whatever the case, this is a time when the directive was followed - even if it was going to result in slower transit of the mail item.

And here is another successful routing docket.  This one reads "by the Persia Aug 24 in New York."  Unfortunately for the postal historian (me), there are no contents in the letter and there is no originating postmark, so I cannot tell for certain where this item was mailed from in the United States.  Clearly, it DID go through New York and it DID leave on a ship from New York on August 24 (yes, it was the Persia).  So, you could say that the docket worked - it went where the writer wanted it to go based on that agreement.

Did They Need Dockets by the 1860s?

By the time we get to letters in the 1860s, the need for writers to include directional docketing had been greatly reduced - though there were times when it was still necessary.  As far as mail from the United States to England, the postal service had a pretty good system for getting letters to the earliest departing steamship - there was very little a directional docket would do that would improve that.

As long as the letter above was mailed on time for that New York departure, it was going to take the earliest departing ship even without the docket.

But, the letter below actually has a somewhat useful docket!

The docket "via Liverpool" at top left could be construed as a directive to put the letter on one of the shipping lines that went through Liverpool - but it actually did more than that.  You see, the Cunard Line would stop at Cork, Ireland and offload mail for England there.  It would then go by rail, cross the water from Kingston to Holyhead, and then on to London by rail.  

Because this item was headed to Scotland, the writer indicated that it should stay on the ship until it got to Liverpool the next day.  From there it would go to Glasgow.

But, again, there is a question as to exactly how useful the docket might be because the mail volume to the United Kingdom was sufficient that mail to Scotland could have been placed into its own mailbag.  If that were the case, it would take the most efficient route to Scotland without needing the docket.  Once more, this is a case where we see mail handling in the process of change.  Dockets were once fairly critical in directing the mail and they are becoming less important as the amount of mail increases and the procedures become more refined.

Back to the Original Cover

Here we are - back at the original item with the docket claiming the letter should go to Boston and leave on the Cunard Steamer Asia on April 25 (Wednesday).  But, clearly, it left New York on a steamer that Saturday (April 28).

The reason for the delay is simple.  The writer did not make it to the post office in time to get the mail to Boston and the departure of the Asia.  The post office simply sent the item to New York, where the next ship was scheduled to sail across the Atlantic.

But, here is the problem for the post office.  The writer makes a claim by saying the letter was to leave Boston on April 25.  The post office provides themselves evidence that it is not THEIR problem by putting the "Too Late" marking on the envelope.  "Hey, George Atkinson.  I don't care what the guy who wrote this says - he didn't get it to us in time for that ship.  Take it up with him!"

This illustrates a bit more about why dockets were still routinely placed on letters.  It could often serve as attempt to provide evidence of timeliness during an era when it took ten to twelve days to cross the Atlantic - and a missed ship could add three more days to the wait!

And there you are!  The first Postal History Sunday of 2021.  I hope you have a great remainder of the weekend and the coming week treats you and yours well.

And here's a docket for this post:  I wrote this on January 2, 2021 and you get to read it on January 3 (or later)!

September's Color

We're doing the "New Year" thing by looking back on the "Old Year."  As I mentioned when I featured July posts, there are simply too many posts to try to do the whole year in one shot.  So, for those months where I managed to get close to a blog a day, we're going to do a separate post.

The idea is that the writer and editor (that would be me... both of them) got together and selected the best reads from each month and put them into posts for you.  Also included are available photos from that month (sometimes I had to pick one from a prior year though!) because, well, we like pictures.  I suspect you do too - so there you have it.

We eliminated Postal History Sunday posts, PAN cross posts and posts that focused on farm business - you can go see those if you want too!  Just check the 'tag list' at the right of the screen and try some of them out.

Without further ado - here are our selections for September of 2020.

Details, Details    People would rather draw lines in the sand for the basic concepts - even if they aren't the right ones to argue over - than 'get into the weeds' and do a little learning and cooperative discovery so they can make the best decision they can make.

Faded   The path turns.  A flash of the deepest blue catches your eye. Suddenly, you don't feel quite so tired and you pick up the pace.  You turn again and there it is.  Something that takes your breath away.  Something that renews you.

Drink Out of the Hose?  Kids and turkeys.  Do the similarities end at the affinity for drinking out of the hose?

Not That Simple   In the end, I discovered that the responses of others who felt I had to either love beets or hate them did not matter - because they haven't taken the time to know beets like I have.

Miles Gone By -  And, this is why it can be so hard to try to make a connection with other people when we try to explain what it is like - doing what we do.  How do you get someone to understand our brand of farming until they have climbed into and back out of a pickup truck thousands of times?

Over/Under on Whelmed -  Feel free to ask the question.  Go ahead!  Are we just borrowing trouble by putting all of these 'big picture' things onto our 'list of concerns?'  It is certainly a valid question - and I have asked myself this question more than once.  So, let's do a reality check here.  Should I be allowing these things to take up brain space?

Learn Something New Again -  If you are a curious soul, like I am, it can be quite enjoyable to dig into something and learn.  I will also admit that learning new things can be a comfort.  And, after the post just prior to this one, I think we all (those of us who write the blog and those who read it) could use a little comforting.

--------------AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION----------

Thank you for reading!  If you are so inclined - tell me which of these August posts were your favorite.  While you are at it - which of the pictures shown on this blog do you like best?

Resolution

The new year is often the time for people to identify goals and renew commitments to health, wellness, prosperity and whatever each individual feels is important at the time.  While I am not one to write a list of resolutions for the new year, I will admit that I do often use the energy a new cycle brings with it to try to do better on a whole host of things.  This year, I am making an exception and giving myself a resolution. 

What Do You Feel and Think When You See This Picture?

Some who read this blog may be more familiar than others with this building and this perspective.  Others may never have seen it in person, but maybe you've seen pictures in the blog.  It doesn't matter - I just want you to take a moment to look at it and explore how this view makes you feel and/or what kinds of things it makes you think of.

Now try this one.

Can you picture yourself in this frame?  What would you be doing?  How would you be feeling?  What would expect to see as you walked into the picture?  What sounds are there?  Is there any breeze?  Do you smell anything?

And this one?

So, I have asked you to explore what you feel or think when you see some pictures from our farm.  I've asked a few people similar questions over the years and I've had others just volunteer thoughts and here are some things I have had people say about similar sights on our farm:

• What a beautiful place!  It's so peaceful.
• I could just sit here for hours.
• This place is so relaxing.
• You must enjoy living here.
• You need to paint the granary the rest of the way... I love to paint.

So, What Do I See?

Initially, all I see are things left undone that still need doing.  

Yes, the granary needs paint.  The trim and siding around the door needs to be finished and the old doors need to be fixed.  We still need to find ways to exclude raccoons from the building and we have work to do to make more of the building useful to how we do things.  

The next picture shows Casa Verde, which is currently uncovered after the plastic tore.  We need to recover the building and do some work on vent on the other side.  The Iowa hydrant in the front of the building has never quite worked as well as it should since we put it in, so that's a mild continuous stresser and there are some failed experiments in the picture as well.  Oh - and you don't see the raised bed that desparately needed weeding just behind this.

Surely the flower is a relaxing picture for me, yes?  Well, no.  I know where this flower resides and it is in an area that needs to be addressed - especially if we want flowers again in the future.

If I think a little longer, I can transport myself into the picture.  I can hear the door on the granary as I open it so I can get food for the chickens.  It makes a rattling, squealing noise as it opens and I can feel the tug on the rope as I hang on to prevent it from slamming onto the roll at the top of the door.  There are a couple of Barn Swallows that come swooping out as I open the door.  They land on the electric line that leaves the building and make their chittering call to tell me it's a good morning to fly. 

So, yes, I can see the beauty and appreciate it.  But, I have to work harder to see 'peaceful' and 'relaxing.'  It can be very difficult to get past the obligations that come with the farm

Once again, this is about perspective.  You can't necessarily know what I am seeing and how it makes me feel or what it makes me think unless you put yourself fully into my shoes.  Similarly, I don't know what cares and worries, joys and preferences, expectations and fears come along for the ride to color your experience of something. 

Resolved

This is part of the reason we are so willing to take sides and engage in conflict.  We have to work - sometimes REALLY hard - to understand each other and see what the other person is seeing.  Apparently, this is so difficult that we are much more willing to fight in opposition than we are to try to understand.

My resolution is to continue to work on being better at understanding what others are seeing so I might have a chance to recognize what motivates them to do and say what they do.  And, I will also listen better to what people might say about me and where I am, so I can appreciate the good things from a different perspective and contemplate whether the critical things are worthy of my attention so I can make changes.

I want you to look at pictures of the farm that shows green plants, some sunshine and a farm building and feel that it is peaceful.  I also want to see those same things and feel a little of that as well.  But, I also hope you can recognize that my perception might be colored by some things you can't necessarily know about.  I don't need you to feel the same way, I just need you to accept that I might not feel the same as you.

By the same token, I need to look at you and consider that what I see in you and where you are from your perspective.  If I see something good, I should call it out - so you can see it again for yourself, because you might have forgotten with all of the difficulties that surround you.  And, if I see something that needs attention, perhaps I need to think a little harder about why that might be the case instead of leaping to judgement.

It's a tall order.  But, the worthwhile resolutions usually are.