"It seems strange to say, but what can help modern man find the answers to his own mystery and the mystery of him in whose image he is created, is silence, solitude -- in a word, the desert. Modern man needs these things more than the hermits of old." Catherine Doherty


Saturday, September 20, 2014

Fall is on the way!

As we head into fall there are few new happenings on the farm as well as new workers!

First was a big birthday for a young man, look like he's having fun?

That's the mildly excited birthday boy on the right.


And what's a birthday without a good ol' square dance, from kids to grown ups everyone had a good time.

Fall is indeed on the way as the garden has been hit by frost twice and have made some of our last deliveries to the food shelves from it this year. With all the help we had this year I think it has been one of the most successful gardens we ran.



The apples are coming in good this year, but with only a couple hands it's pretty hard to keep up. The apple pies have been really delicious though! The entire orchard is a project in the wings for us soon.


The chickens aren't laying eggs yet but they will soon.


The turkeys are getting ready and growing bigger, and fatter and should all set to go by...

THANKSGIVING,.....dun dun daaa!


After a ton of meetings, a mountain of paper work and a team of lawyers, the municipal gravel pit for the town has gone into full swing on the back forty, a truly self sustainable gift for the center's finances.

The Mary Garden, needs some trimming and this year hopefully Mary will have a house around her and she will be able to welcome visitors all winter. Not to mention a giant Rosary with white rocks all around her.


The lawn mower is looking a little tiny when I drive it around the Mary Garden. Or am I looking a little big. By "big" I mean healthy and tall! Think "Little John" on a teeny weeny mower, in a Hawaiian shirt. 


Once the fine tuning is done around Mary, it's time to break out the real lawn mowers.


With only a little training the Dog has become an excellent herding dog so now we can let the real lawn mowers go to work all over the farm. No gas, no repairs, no hands on...


Just point them in the right direction and keep a weary eye. Good bye brush, thorns, weeds and work. So far the herding work has them trained pretty well too. They know where to go and where the Dog will meet them if they wander to far.


You know you've got a lot of grass mowed when these eating machines  actually stop to rest!


But those little guys are nothing compare to these eating machines!


These horses can mow down a field in a couple days and go looking for more.

More by the house, some trimming by the ramp,


More around the cars and the parking spaces .


Taking care of these two big beauties is a lot of work for these ladies. Especially when they haul water up from the river, two buckets at a time. They even draft this young man in on the work, but he seems to enjoy it as much as they do. These two are really working miracles with these two horses.


The work can be hard and at times seemingly never ending, but it is rewarding at the same time. Simple tasks that bring humility and a closeness to God. 

Fall pictures to come next, plus retreat info, maybe a Franciscan party to attend and more. Always more,..more joy, more peace, more quiet, as we surrender ourselves to God's will for our lives.

Stay tuned.