This past weekend we hosted a birthday party for a couple of our younger CSA members.  Lilly and Isabelle are both turning 14 this month, and they wanted to celebrate here on the farm.

I know this was a rather out of the ordinary birthday party for a couple of City Girls, but it was truly extraordinary for me. I was lucky enough to spend time with a group of engaged young women, who indulged me when I asked them to put their phones away and to look up and around while we walk around the farm. They harvested greens for dinner, strawberries for dessert and pumpkins for the next morning’s breakfast. No junk, just real food that everyone participated in and enjoyed eating.

The farm was a space for these young women to be young women, harvesting, and cooking. It was also a place for them to be kids, petting the horse, walking the dog, getting excited about chickens waking them up at 4:30 AM (smile), and watching a sunrise. After breakfast and clean-up, they went out to the orchard to play capture the flag. What a treat to watch them running around, in and out of the trees, lots of whispering and shouting, whooshing of speedy young soccer player feet. Cell phones were forgotten, and kids got to be kids. I can’t think of a better way to spend a glorious sunny Sunday morning on the farm! Happy Birthday, Isabelle! Happy Birthday, Lilly!