Susan, an intern here on the farm and one of the hardest working people I know, has been celebrating the birthday of Abraham Lincoln with some sort of party for the last five years. She took the afternoon off yesterday and prepared a feast of turkey (WHRI raised and butchered) and pie which we all partook of around a giant table set up in the dorm living room.
There are a lot of aspects of living on this farm that are difficult for me. However, I am coming to learn that they are often times the most beautiful as well. We are very transient here. People never stay for longer than a year and often are only with us for a month or so. We are currently hosting four elderly couples who are wintering away from their farms in northern Indiana and have come to help us here. They are amazingly hard working and wise and a joy to be around.
As I looked around the table last night at Neil's mother, Phillis, age seventy five, dressed as Mary Todd Lincoln complete with veiled hat and silk gown sitting next to her husband, Bill, who had pinned a card to his sweater that read, "I lived in a log cabin just like Abe Lincoln. Home sweet home", I realized that these are the individual relationships and interactions that are going to shape my life and I hope I remember them clearly.
I wish you could have been there. After we stuffed ourselves silly on a number of glorious foods (stuffed spinach bread, mashed potatoes, whole wheat biscuits, pumpkin pie, lime cream pie, chocolate cake, home made ginger cookie ice cream...) Phillis turned to Susan, and said, "Three cheers for Susan! Hip, hip!"
and here's the good part... the whole table joined in. Twenty five people yelling,
"HOORAY!!"
"Hip, hip!"
"HOORAY!!"
"Hip, hip!"
"HOORAY!!"
and I laughed until I cried.
1 comment:
everything is better with old people.
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