Land and the Human Soul

Land and the Human Soul What damage do we do to our own souls when we treat the land as if we own it? This is a question that often inspires incredulous rage fueled by the assumption of the primacy of property rights. I remember a phone conversation several years ago with a new next-door neighbor whose vineyard… Read more »

The Sale of a Small Family Farm

When I saw the recent missed call on my cell phone, I grew worried. I had just spoken with my sister Judy several hours before. Something must have happened. I didn’t reach her until late in the afternoon. “I received the first payment,” she said. “The farm is gone.” We knew this was coming. I… Read more »

Walking the Land

Walking the Land   There is so much you learn from walking your land each day!  There is an old saying: the best fertilizer is the farmer’s feet. I understand this in many ways. Most days my goat companions walk with me, along with the dogs, of course. There is an implicit order: who walks… Read more »

Where Goats Become Grass and Lupine

Grass and wildflowers almost obscure the stones of our goats’ graves.                 Where Goats Become Grass and Lupine This month five years ago we lost two of our dear pygmy goats, first Natalie, then Boris. They were quite old, 14 1/2 years, had long lives, but we miss… Read more »