What do you think of when I say the word "Farmer"? I am sure there's a large difference in the images that come to the minds of those of you who know a farmer and those who don't. I bet a whole lot of money though, that the first flash was of an older white male for all of you. You're not wrong to think that either. In Yolo County, where I farm, only 11% of farms are owned and operated by a female, and nation-wide the average age of a farmer is 58. So, as a young lady farmer, I am reminded frequently that what I am doing is rocking some boats. Good. That's what I came here to do. But first, how did I even get here?
I have had a long, colorful arc of experience that brought me to farming. It's taken me through 3 degrees (Fine Arts, Biology, and International Relations) and more strange jobs than most people have in their lives (Pedi-cab driver, hotel room cleaner, group-home counselor, fast-food worker, grocery clerk, produce clerk, food-bank donations manager, canvasser... and those are just the paid ones). I was young, ambitious, passionate, idealistic, and so very confused. I put all of my eggs into the Peace Corps basket figuring I would throw it up to the Universe- let it decide where I should be and what I should be doing. I was through the whole year-long process, waiting for my invitation when reality crept in. Very long story-short, my then fiance became my wife ( and the PC at that time did not send same-sex couples together) and I took a good look at what deferring my loans would look like when I came back. My desperate attempt at making someone else responsible for my future didn't really blow up in my face as much as it deflated like a sad balloon.
So, there I was, a UC grad working the same minimum wage job that got me through college- after college. I sulked watching my wife look for a year for a job with her Master's in Civil Engineering, and shuddered at my prospects. My resume reflected my gypsy like interests and lack of commitment but distracted from my actual talents and accomplishments. In a better time in history, my best chance would have been a paid internship, but those don't really exist anymore- and if they did- I sure couldn't find one. I was at square one, with a bad attitude to boot.
What the hell was I going to do with myself? I couldn't stand being beaten down and staying there. It's just not in my nature. Every time I hit a dead end, I found another dream and sought it with vigor (thus the many non-related degrees and bizarre array of jobs). But, what job is going to pay me to act on my morals, give me freedom to shape my day-to-day activities, feed my interest for ever-changing projects, play on my talents of cooking, help me to reach out to various communities to help them make more educated choices about what they buy and eat, let me take dog-petting breaks- a nap even, force me to learn, let me be an environmental steward and educator, and be happy? It seems obvious now, but it took awhile to find my answer: a farmer.
The answer had been there all along. My junior and senior year projects in high school were about organic farming, I interned at Davis with the Kids in the Garden project, I helped start a food pantry on campus, I had been trying to start a community garden that donated food at community college, and my passion for food was always evident. I enrolled in the California Farm Academy and starting going out more regularly to a small, organic farm I had been volunteering with. I took a job with a project growing food with volunteer labor in order to donate and acre-and-a-half of vegetables to the food bank. As I kept farming, the light kept getting brighter. It all started falling together. As a farmer I found that all of those things I was looking for in a career and I really liked doing it. It is starting to feel like this is where I had been headed all along.
Now that I am here and I have you with me, I am so excited about the things we're going to accomplish together. It was important to me to not only share the story of my path here with you, but also to share how I found that life isn't always linear or logical, and to find yourself you just have to be out and doing. You have to try EVERYTHING that sounds interesting to find the one thing that makes your soul sing. The world absolutely needs more of people doing things that make them happy. We should all be seeking Bliss and sharing the bits we glean when we do.
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