This week has been a doozy, in the best way. It all actually started about 18 months ago when I started volunteering at this organic biodynamic farm 10 minutes away from my house. Little did I know that I would often find the 1 hour that I volunteered per week to be the most rewarding "working" hour of the week. Caroline, the owner of the farm, has also become a good friend. I look forward to seeing her on a weekly basis and enjoy chatting with her while weeding, or harvesting or clearing fence lines amongst other jobs. She thinks it's funny that I tell her that I am just there to "do her bidding".
Last Friday, I sat with Caroline in what she likes to call the "big fat house" and we talked seriously about how I could become more involved with the farm. We had actually been discussing this over a few weeks, but the conversation felt more urgent last Friday. After we had been sitting and talking for an hour, Caroline just came out and asked me directly if I could be the leader of the farm. She had been looking for a farm manager for months and had been interviewing candidates for a few months, but no one seemed right. I was flattered that she would even consider me for the job, but I guess after 18 months, we really have gotten to know each other and she told me that she has the confidence in me that I can do the job. I told her that I would think on it over the weekend, but inside, I was jumping up and down. It felt like the universe was speaking to me and handing me an opportunity that I couldn't pass up.
Early last week, we worked out all of the details and last Thursday, I resigned from my current job. It was difficult because I've been there from the very beginning. I was literally employee #1 of this scrappy start-up and it felt bittersweet to be leaving after 11 years. There are some people who I will really miss seeing and working with. So, now begins the transition over the next couple of weeks. It's going to be such a different life for me. New hours, new setting, new people, new to do list. I'm grateful that Caroline is going to be teaching me a lot and that I will have a job where I can be outside much more than I have been. There is also quite a lot of community outreach which is part of the job, so I will enjoy meeting new people and trying to get them involved with the farm.
In a weird way, it feels like I've come full circle. When I was considering my next step after getting my BS in Food Science, I had an offer for a plant biology graduate program at Washington State University. I went out there and visited and probably would've loved being there, but I wasn't ready to leave my immediate family on the East coast. Instead, I opted to continue with a food biochemistry masters program at Rutgers, but when I graduated, I chose to pursue the product development path, instead of seeing what I could find that was more based in plant science. I think deep down, I've always wanted to work with plants. I love having my hands in the dirt and watching plants flourish and change. I can't wait to start this new growing season at the farm. It is a beautiful farm and because it is biodynamic, they have a no-till practice with rows upon rows of raised beds with rich soil. There is so much more to the property than the beds though. One of my first jobs there will be to work on the walking/running trails on the property that surround the farm. I will also be helping Caroline and Bob figure out what the vision should be for some empty pastures they have on the farm. I can't wait to get started! I'm really hoping that my kids will continue to come with me to the farm. The times when they've joined me are cherished memories.
Harvesting flowers with my girl
Charlie clearing weeds from the beds
As if that wasn't enough excitement for one week, last Thursday, I also found out that I got into a big mountain race that takes place in Switzerland and France, the OCC (Orsières-Champex-Chamonix) of UTMB. This has been my dream race, the one I have been working towards since 2019. First, I needed to collect enough points to apply for the lottery. This required doing at least one qualifying 50K race and one qualifying 50M race between 2019-2021 (skipping 2020 when no races happened) to gather enough points. The lottery is popular. For over 8,000 entrants, they only select a little over 1,000 runners. Somehow, I got selected. I was so shocked when I saw that I got in. I was pretty much prepared to not get in and then have to figure out another race for the summer or fall, but now it looks like I'm going to be training for OCC! With over 11,000 ft of vertical gain over a distance of 56K, it will be super challenging. I will definitely be reaching out to a coach for a training plan. Given my new job, I will also have to figure out a way to train in hot/humid summer afternoons because all of the farm work will need to be done before noon. I can't wait to be in Chamonix for UTMB just to spectate as well. I'll finally be at a race where there will be plenty of elites to spot.
Course overview from the UTMB website
I know the next 2 weeks won't be easy. I'll be handing over documents and trying to leave my projects in capable hands. Although I won't officially get started with the farm until February 14th, there are a few things that I want to help with immediately. That will mean working after hours and on weekends. I'm so grateful for the opportunity though. Life is such a trip. This is another one of those times when something just fell into my lap. I feel so lucky. It's like I won the lottery twice in a week.
Baseball cap won't cut it anymore. Need to find myself a big straw hat.
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