Spring 2016
Back in the Spring of 2016 Aunt Gretchen, the youngest of the three siblings on my mom’s side, came for a visit from Colorado. The weather cooperated beautifully and we all headed down to the farm for a visit. Mom hadn’t been down in who knows how long and neither had Grandpa. I was excited to show them what I had done and what I was dreaming of building. I was also really nervous.
Why nervous? I was concerned that I was steamrolling the land with my own dreams and not being respectful of the dreams already in place. Grandpa had had a vision for the land way back when but had abandoned it decades ago. Would he be ok with what I was thinking? Aunt Gretchen also had dreams for the land and I was hoping my plans aligned with hers.
How amazing was this trip! I walked with Grandpa and just watched him stop and look up at the trees that he plants so many years ago. We all shared a moment when we saw that the daffodils Grandma planted in front of the old cabin were blooming already. She was with us that day.
Aunt Gretchen and I romped around, exploring parts of the land I hadn’t reached yet due to the overgrowth. We found a tree stand some hunter had attached permanently. After clambering up we sat back and enjoyed the view of the gorge and the tiny creek trickling down. I treasure these moments with Aunt Gretchen- when we are hidden away somewhere and are just dreaming.
She convinced me not to go on a destructive rampage on all the tree stands but instead make them into little tree house reading nooks. We talked about renting goats to help with the overgrowth and what all we could use the land for, how we could recycle water, sustainable renewable energy ideas…basically we got carried away dreaming of bigger and bigger projects, as usual.
The small group of us wandered up to the pond, where I realized what my real goal of this whole trip was. I wanted to re-introduce the land back into the family. I saw my mom reconnect to the land. She got excited and started dreaming with Aunt Gretchen and I. Grandpa slowly started to open up. Mom was on board! The land is making a comeback!
Nowata Farm 