March 2013 update

It's mid March, almost my eighteenth birthday, and I'm still making progress towards my goal of farming. The goal is to learn as much as I can, through working and experiencing. In two weeks, I'm headed back to the farm that I volunteered at during the summer. I'll be there for about a week, during which time I'll learn through working. My experience there in August was amazing, because I got a chance to get my hands dirty, and work in a garden. At the end of the day, I could see the results of my work. My accomplishments weren't abstract, nor were they measured in arbitrary monetary terms. My day's accomplishments were visible in the fact that there was a garden bed cleared, which could immediately be used for planting. I had a letter published in Mother Earth News. I look forward to making more progress, as I learn more. I still want to acquire land for myself, and will do that as soon as I'm able.

The future

The future of my education. Over the next few months, I'll be at a transition point. I'll have finished my associate's degree, and need to decide if/where to transfer to, to finish the next two years of college. I'm looking at a practical farming program in Central Massachusetts.   ( http://www.farmschool.org/prog_practicalfarm.html ) I am also looking at other college programs, for the next 2 years. While there are many schools with an environmental/agricultural component, I am averse to going to a school that feels too big. I've only attended small schools, and I feel that it would be better for me to stay in small environments. Once I turn 18, more programs will be at my disposal, for the summers. Once I turn 20, I can hopefully do the ADAMAH program in Connecticut.  http://isabellafreedman.org/adamah For now, I need to figure out what I'm doing for next year. I'm concerned about the immediate future. I'm wondering what program I'll be attending come fall.  I am also wondering what I am doing over the course of the summer. Perhaps a multi-month WWOOF stint. I have options. I am simply trying to decide what to do. 

India, Take Two

After the "failure" of my recent trip to India, I felt discouraged.
I felt bad that I had crossed continents and oceans for an opportunity that didn't exist.
Now, I'm trying to rebuild the motivation and curiosity about the world, that had briefly slipped away after my failed attempt.
This winter, I will hopefully be volunteering at Sadhana Forest, in Aurovillle, India.
This will be an entirely different trip, because rather than simply finding a website of an "organization," I have spoken to people who have volunteered at Sadhana Forest, and had a fantastic experience.
I am truly excited for this amazing opportunity, one which I am so lucky to have.
For anyone interested, here's the website of Sadhana Forest.
www.sadhanaforest.org

Progress

Things are certainly moving along in my endeavor to buy the land in NC.
I had a wonderful chat with the owner yesterday, and he's more than willing to work with me.
My goal is that I will be able to start living and working on the land next summer.
It's going to require a lot of work, as the land is currently overgrown, and there are no buildings.
The property consists of forests and pasture, with a pond in the middle.
It is on these 11 acres where my farming aspiratoins will come to fruition.
Over the next several years, I'll turn these overgrown acres into a place where crops and animals are rased in a socially and environmentally responsible way.
In addition, I am committed to maintaining the peacefulness of the area, both for my sake, and the neighbors.
The neighbors are incredible welcoming and supportive, and have similar goals about organic farming.
I feel that this is a new chapter in my life and for this blog as well.
Prior to this moment, the blog was a series of theoretical posts about my desires for the distant future
Now, this blog will still have posts with my reflections on life, food, and farming, but it will also be a blog of progress, with regular updates as I take this journey.

Buying the place in NC

I'm sending this message out to friends, family, and others.
If you can help, either by donating, or by spreading the word, it would be much appreciated.

"Since you have to be 18 to fund a project through Kickstarter, I'm going to try funding my own project through another grassroots method. Good-old word of mouth.My goal is to raise enough money so that I can purchase 11 acres of land in North Carolina, with a pond.I am trying to fundraise so that I can create an organic haven, where good, clean food grows everywhere. It's a large goal, but I have hope that enough people are willing to help me make a difference in the food system.Currently, the asking price is $179,000.I don't expect one person to give the entire amount, but I believe that this can be accomplished through many small gifts.Similar to Kickstarter, there would be rewards for each level of donation, such as a farm tour, organic produce, ceramic pieces, and other itemsIf you are interested in helping me in this endeavor, please email me at drouaultfarm@yahoo.com.(please feel free to distribute this message as you wish) "

Back in the "normal" routine.

I'm back to a "normal" routine, in which we are expected to eat food, and just think of it as food. We're not supposed to ponder the quality or its origins. We're just supposed to fill our plates.
I'm fed up with this. I like eating meals that I have prepared, and that I know all sources of the ingredients.
For example, while in North Carolina, I ate fried green tomatoes, which I had picked off the vine that afternoon.
Outside of farms, there's always a vast disconnect, and people don't think about what they are ingesting.
The only time that they ponder their food is when the add heaps of salt to the food, as a way to mask the blandness.
I urge everyone who can to try a farm-fresh egg.
You will discover what an egg is supposed to taste like. The color is different as well, a deeper yellow, if not orange.
If you have the opportunity, eat real, farm fresh food, while it's still available.
And going back to the main point of this blog, that's why I want to farm.
I want real, healthy food, in its purest form, to be available.

From idle chatter to reality.

I feel that this blog is moving in a great direction.
Roughly two years ago, this blog started as an expresion of just ideas, with no practical basis.
Now, after spending time working on farms, these aspirations seem to be coming to fruition, especially after finding the parcel of available land in North Carolina.
As peculiar as this may sound, I feel that I've found a path that I'm meant to be on, and I feel quite content.
After each hour of farm work, I feel even more joyous.
I've received some criticism lately, claiming that my area of focus isn't a "real cause."
I am deeply puzzled by this.
My goal is to help provide clean, healthy, organic food.
How is this a misdirected cause?
It's making a positive difference in the food system, which is definitely flawed, as we can see by the thousands of pounds of food recalled each month.