Written by Emily
Saturday was going to be gorgeous, so we decided to take advantage of our CSA’s Open Farm Day. We packed up the kiddos and left the comforts of suburbia behind to become farmers for the day. The flyer that came with our vegetables warned: “do not rely on GPS or Google Maps to get you here.” To help the town-folk make it there in one piece, they provided directions on their website. Well, surely they underestimated the navigational genius of our iPhone, android and car’s GPS. We set out with all three synced up and ready to get us to the farm. It was supposed to take one hour. Two and a half hours later, desperate and concerned we might perish from lack of food and water and our personal creature comforts, a strongly worded letter to our beloved farm owners reeled in our heads–how about some signage?! What if there is an emergency? How will anyone find us? Think safety, people!
We finally arrived, clinging to each other and questioning what we thought we knew about the modern world.
But the sun was shining, and no one was crying. We were skeptical, though, hardened by our driving experience. We were certain we would find little more than this after our laborious journey:
A few smashed berries.
Still a bit rattled, we hiked to the strawberry fields where all of our frustration fell away.
Here is what we actually found:
Rows upon rows of ripe-for-the-picking berries.
The kids searched for berries like pirates on the hunt for beautiful red gems tucked beneath vibrant leafy greens. No one whined or cried or fought. They explored and got a little dirty and had a fabulous time, sneaking luscious berries at every turn.
On our way out of the fields, my son Noah announced, “Mommy, I keep seeing all of these butterflies spinning around and falling in love!”
Then he showed me what that looked like:
Now, I know nothing about butterfly relationships, but I do know that for me, a human, falling in love feels a lot like spinning again and again and again until what’s left is an overwhelmingly dizzy sensation. And it seems to me that if I were a butterfly, I might like to show my love in a beautiful spinning dance. Those butterflies have got it right.
Long trip, be damned. Open Farm Day might just have been the best. day. ever. And while I’m not ready to uproot ourselves and move to the country (one transition at a time, folks), a day trip here and there might be just what we need to see and feel love in everything around us. No GPS required.
Fourtuitous 
Aw…so sweet!
Precious memories! So glad you are so adventuresome!
What a great journey!! Love this.
That little guy always seems to have the exact words to express very special feelings! He’s a poet at heart!