Farm

The Farm, Ilion, NY

I am on a farm today. Yes, a farm. My friends, Laura and Michael, are living on a farm, on which they are raising organic produce, which they market directly. An admirable form of right living. A demanding occupation of long hours and back-breaking work. While interacting with Laura and Michael, I see a clarity that comes with hard work and mindful routine. It's impressive.

How far too many of us have drifted from the basic work of living! We see food as commodity. We busy ourselves with our minds and have to remember to work our bodies. We prize our homes and cars without appreciating the labor required to produce and maintain them. The realities of maintaining planetary life and health are hidden under a layer of business and trade. We buy things instead of making them. And, as human beings and citizens of the planet, are are lessened by this.