Yesterday I was out on the farm with a young helper, and we tried to identify the visitors who had snacked on our crops. Groundhogs had chomped on the freshly weeded beans and kale; birds had pecked at the juicy ripe strawberries, and I have no idea what got into the radishes. (A Google search suggests voles, and provides the following suspect advice: “Encourage habitat for snakes, coyotes and birds of prey—all great predators of voles.”)
Today is the United Nation’s World Environment Day, and the theme this year is “Connecting People to Nature.” Our farm always makes me feel intimately connected to nature—to the plants that sprout and blossom and produce fruit from a tiny seed; and to the animals that can’t help but be drawn to the vibrant reds, greens, and purples of the emerging crops.
It also makes me feel connected to people—to the faithful few who turn out week after week, and the willing crowd that shows up en masse when a big push is needed; as well as to those who experience hunger, who will receive this food with our love.
Mostly, the farm connects me to God, as I wonder at the divine power that packs 3 lb cantaloupes into seeds weighing a thousandth of an ounce; the creativity that paints the zinnias—and the butterflies that dance around them—in so many colors; and the mysterious, life-giving presence in all of creation that together declares the glory of God.