|
|
Hi Andy,
I'm not sure if you remember me or not but I was a WWOOFer for the Farm back in 2010. I sent out an e-mail recently to practically everybody I know, including yourself, about the next exciting chapter in my life. Also, in that e-mail I promised to write everybody a message of gratitude within the next year. Here is my message of gratitude for you:
Thank you, Andy for changing my life. Back when I first decided to WWOOF on the farm, I had just come back from studying abroad in sunless, polluted London for 6 months. As you can imagine, it was a bit of a shock to the system to arrive at the farm. I'm pretty sure that everybody who I was introduced to on the first day looked me over and saw this pasty white marshmallow standing before them and muttered "gooood luck" under their breath. Yet, I knew that this was an experience that I needed to have.
I grew up in Fort Collins for the majority of my life, yet I had no idea where my organic produce came from or the amount of work, love and dedication went into planting, growing, and and harvesting it.
During my time on the farm, I was able to gain a MUCH needed perspective, appreciation and gratitude for this earth, and the people who reap what it has to offer. While the labor was challenging for me at first with my Irish skin under the summer sun and my less than muscular build--over time it became something of great joy to me.
I can't possibly think of anything so wonderful as on a cool summer night, the sky FILLED with stars, the sublime scent on cilantro drifting on by. Or perhaps the exquisite sense of gratitude for the small things when picking fresh berries off the vine...pausing to sample a few along the way. For the entirety of my stay on the farm, I never was stressed out about schedules and deadlines. I was content to simply pull weeds, clean eggs, and pick berries. Each of these acts allowed me the time to slow down and meditate on what I really wanted my life to be about. It was a hugely transformational process for me.
Despite my initial worries, by the end of the summer, I had become a completely different person. My skin was filled with freckles and my heart was filled with a love for the earth and its people.
For that--
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Love and Peace,
Katrina (Tina) 
|
