By Melissa Napier
A couple of years ago my friend Amy moved to Hickory with
her husband and children and set out to find or create a group of friends to
get together to make things, share their crafty skills and learn from one another
about our adventures in living simply. She and a friend, Cindy, decided to
found a chapter of Mary Jane’s Farm Girls. Here’s the main website: http://www.maryjanesfarm.org/farmgirl-connection/
We meet once a month with a new topic led by different
people from within the group. Topics range from canning jam and making butter
from milk fresh from the cow, to home grown herbal remedies and sewing a
repurposed feed sack purse.
I was a bit overwhelmed at my first meeting, when the
conversation over coffee turned to, “How to choose the best horse at your next purchase,” and, “What to do to encourage your
chickens to lay through the winter.” Wow! These are ‘real’ farm girls! By the end of the meeting, though, they were
all begging me to lead the next meeting because they all wanted to learn to
crochet. Well, I couldn’t believe I had something to offer these ladies after all!
Each time I come home enriched by the time spent with such diverse people, some
who actually live on functioning farms or some who are just hoping to plant
tomatoes on the patio next summer.
I think the best thing about this group is that it doesn’t require anyone to own a cow
or chickens, wear an apron or cowboy hat, or grow all your own food, but
instead you just have to have a desire to learn more about how others are
living, learning and growing, and be willing to offer your own knowledge and
experience to the group in exchange. They say “being a farm girl is a condition
of the heart,” and
I must admit, that motto has helped me to embrace more changes to my suburban
life.
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