Life on the Farm

I admit there's some guilt this morning as our life on the farm hasn't changed much during the pandemic.  Sure, we don't go out, but we don't go out that much in normal times.  I work from home already although hubby is furloughed.  But we aren't sitting in a 1500 square foot condo in northern NJ with three kids and two dogs.  I count my blessing every single day.

Maybe this episode will force us all to make changes to live a better quality life.  We made the conscious decision to live where we wanted to live about 17 years ago - the sudden death of a loved one changed the direction of our lives forever.  It was not an easy thing to do - we had to make it work and there were times when life was difficult and I questioned our path, but it was the right journey for sure although it took many years to finally get here.  We had to find work in a place where there really isn't much work - but we found a way.

So how is life on the farm?  It's busy.  It's a lot of work - you need a very strong worth ethic.  There's no time for lounging on the couch binge watching Netflix unless you are deathly ill or have a broken bone (yes, seriously).  It's not for everyone. 

The mornings are early - every morning.  No sleeping in.  The cold doesn't care.  The snow isn't a roadblock.  Even sickness is not an excuse.  The animals have to be fed. Laziness is not allowed here.  Getting dressed at noon never happens.  Manicures?  Not if you live on a farm.

Improvisation is key.  When we lost power for almost two weeks (and thus our water) during an unexpected storm, we made almost daily visits to a local spring to get our water.  It was hard work (and we now have a generator).  At some point soon, we may need to use this skill again. We'll see.
 

There's no "down time" except maybe in the dead of winter.  In spring, the "honey do" list is quite long and never gets completed one hundred percent. Yesterday I weeded and cleaned the patio, mucked stalls, dug-up and replanted ivy, weeded the driveway, clipped a horse, cleaned out beds by the driveway, cleaned out leaves from under my boxwoods, cooked dinner, rode one horse and planted herbs.  Today - will finish clipping, will ride two horses, will drag my ring and set-up jumps, will start working on my garden, will muck stalls, will vacuum my car, and maybe will have an hour or so to stitch.  We'll see...... My fitbit registers 5 digits almost every single day.  Yesterday about 20,000 steps.  Two weeks ago my all-time record for one day - 31,000 when I re-seeded a large horse pasture on foot.

But the rewards are great......

Be safe!