The funneling whirl of harvest season hasn’t stopped spinning but today we hovered quietly in a circle inside all that. Hay bales for seats, the team put on exfoliating gloves and buffed the potatoes in order to grade them. The hardiest of all will be tucked in the wax boxes to the back of the walk-in and we won’t see them again until the end of winter, perhaps all the way into summer.
We try to find that spot of calm each day when we gather for “farmer lunch”, sitting together to share updates and a meal. Today we were lucky to share it with farmstay guests who hail from Norway (currently assigned to the Norwegian Embassy in New York but exploring their own future plans to return to operate their family farm). We also celebrated two seasonal colleagues who are moving on. Charlotte heads North to Barrows, Alaska and Eddie, returning to his home in Florida. And neighbor Emily stopped to share a farewell and an impromptu lunch.
We generally all treasure farmer lunch. In fact a quote from an exit interview this week was “I wouldn’t trade it for a pot of gold”! But having guest from outside our farm family gives us a chance to feel its deliciousness in a deeper way. Today there were fried green tomatoes à la Penelope, goat stew and panzanella salad and Donna’s (locally famous!) green tomato cake.
Feedback suggests our hardy fare has potential to please a wider audience! And one realizes what we do every day is a localvore foodies’ dream, grab what is fresh and (overly-) plentiful and whip it into a meal. Often from our vantage it is calories to hungry folks and clearing seconds and extras but from another vantage point it is the ultimate in authentically local and seasonal. Voi-la!
So yell if you are going to be near Exit 5 some midday and book yourself a seat at the farmer lunch table.
And as for Charlotte and Ed, well, one of the formal privileges of becoming a Green Mountain Girls Farm “farmer emeritus” (see formal proclamations) is an open invitation to farmer lunch. We look forward to hearing stories from your good work as you move on Charlotte and Ed… And we are so excited to have broadened our Norwegian points of interest. May everyone enjoy a “farmer” lunch!
