In some ways a farm is like a collage.

So many different little pieces that make up the whole. The overall picture of ours is a beautiful valley and its river, in which sits a big RED barn, a few houses tucked away in its different corners, three cabins in the woods for guests, some charmingly broken down rail fences bound up with binder twine (every farmer’s go-to emergency tool).

There are the corrals, the fields of green, the horses, and of course, the cows that stop in to say hi on their breaks from cavorting amongst and exploring the hills all summer, and snuggle in to be pampered and fed all winter.

If you look even a little closer, you’ll find all these interestingly shaped spaces inside the obvious farm stuff. In one you’ll find the machinery we need to make the hay – more specifically – the work and HASSLE of it breaking down. The day to day routine of sprinklers and fixing fences and chasing cows, again. The scientific exploring and pondering, and sometimes agonizing, over weather and which fertilizer works the best. The side jobs we take to keep the farm afloat. The guests that come for coffee, and strangers that find their way to our cabins to rest and relax in the peace, the neighbours across the river and all around…

To appreciate a farm collage, we must of course study its people. And so you will meet a few in this here blog: The farmer, with his musings and oddball humour…  (as you perhaps have already noticed by the previous blog posting, “Where there’s smoke is there fire?”). You’ll know him by the name Al, and by the very different style of blogging than this narrator. And then there’s the farm kitchen Expert, who you’ll meet in the next post as Gwen. She’s about to pull out some family secrets – those recipes that make our mouths water – and share some tidbits about family and roots.

After all – what is a farm without philosophy and humor? … What is a farm without its kitchen and the marvelous things that come out of it?

Perhaps this blending of personalities and writing styles will keep you on your toes, and help you enjoy each new post. You might never know what’s hit you, but at least it will be different, and hopefully fun.