Down to Earth Farm

Last week, I had the opportunity to work at a local farm in Jacksonville. It is very small, and the owners only grow organic fruits and vegetables, although they also grow flowers and raise chickens. While I am not really the farmer type, I admit that I have learned to appreciate the hard work that goes into growing the food that we eat. My job was to carry large trash bags from one side of the farm to the other, and empty the contents in a pile. The bags were filled with leaves that the owners picked up off the sides of the road. Luckily, I didn't have to do it all myself. Several of the bags were pretty heavy, so my partner helped me out. I lost track at how many bags we carried. I was at the farm for 3 hours, and for the majority of that time, there was only 2 of us working, (not counting the professor, the owner, and another volunteer). Once another girl from our class came, we were given a very brief tour, then it was back to work. We managed to get almost all of the bags emptied (it was a very large pile) before I left at 3 o'clock. I had a great time, but I was happy to go home and take a shower!