Homegrown Friendships in Western Mass
Meet Bill. Bill takes credit for being the very first farmer of locally grown organic produce in Sunderland, if not all of Western Massachusetts. And, that was decades before buying organic was fashionable or profitable.
This morning, Bill showed me around his "Funny Farm" pointing out chicken coops, black raspberry bushes, plowed over patches of boc choi and a neighbors inventive tractor that cuts, bails and packs at the same time. Bill is a woodworker, farmer, traveler, father, green party member and recent shaver of a scraggy 30-year old beard.
He kindly offered up the spare room in his 1911 farm house after a night of food and fun at Max's 50th birthday party last night. And even though Bill is voting for presidential nominee Cynthia McKinney rather than Obama, it's not John McAngry and Caribou Barbie so I guess that's okay.
Bill is one of dozens of friends I keep meeting thanks to Max; owner of the GoNomad Cafe and travel website in South Deerfield. In 2005 it was brilliant writers, Kent, Joe, Steve and phenomenal photographer, Paul Shoul. This weekend is was Bill, Katherine, his 3 sisters, his daughter Katie and on and on and on. If a man is judged every year not by how many people he loves but how many people love him then Max takes the prize for being a guy smothered in constant affection. May I hope to have half that many close friendships at 50 yrs that Max has.
Happy Birthday buddy.
posted by Sonja Stark of PilotGirl™ @ 9:54 PM
1 Comments:
What a contrast between the picture of the devastated landscape in your 'End of Black Blood' blog entry and Bill's farm! That tractor, however, probably runs on diesel (unless Bill has found a better way to power it).
The question is how to responsibly and intelligently use oil but seeking an answer is not high on an oil man's priorities if it means we might use less of a resource Big Oil makes billions from providing.
All praise to Bill for raising organic produce and a belated Happy Birthday to Max.
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