Motivation Monday: Why I Farm Roadtrip Week 12

It's hard to believe today marks the start of week 12 on the road for the Why I Farm Roadtrip. This morning I'm in Massachusetts. I love what I'm doing and the stories I'm able to share, but life on the go can be exhausting. Here are a few stories that give me a little extra energy when things get tough.

Delaware farmer: Marie Mayor

“I became a farmer when I was about 56. I retired from the federal government. I had been in education for 42 years, I think. Now I’m here. My partner, Sharon, and I have been doing this for 14 years. We came out here to buy a lavender plant and the farmer was moving. She was getting married and moving to Australia to grow lavender there. We came to tell her goodbye. She said, ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do. My farm deal fell through yesterday.’ Sharon and I said, ‘Who’s your realtor?’ Just on the spur of the moment we bought a farm. It’s absolutely the truth and I tell the story because I still can’t believe I did it.” – Marie Mayor, co-owner of Lavender Fields at Warrington Manor, Milton, Delaware

Virginia Farmer: Robert Harris

“If you ever want to be close to the good Lord above, you’ve got to be a farmer cause that’s gonna teach you faith like nothing else can. You sit out here in this seat and watch a little bitty old seed come out and grow. Harvest is just miraculous. A lot of people don’t know what they’re missing. Even the hard work. There are days when it’s 105 degrees and you walk out of the house in the morning and start sweating just walking to the truck. But at the end of the day, it’s a good kind of tired. You know you put in an honest day’s work. You know you’re not going to get rich doing it, but it’s who I am. This is what I do.” - Robert Harris, first generation farmer from Chatham, Virginia

Virginia farmer: Coley Drinkwater

“I farm because I feel called to. I love the challenge, it’s where my heart is, and I love working with my family. Farming gives my life purpose. When I fulfill that purpose I feel like I am my truest self and, most of the time, my best version of me. I think that to do anything other than farm would feel like a dishonest life. I am fortunate that my purpose is also my passion. Farm life is hard, oh so hard, but it also has many blessings such as working with family, eating homemade snacks at Grandma’s, and watching my niece grow up.” - Coley Drinkwater of Richlands Dairy Farm in Blackstone, Virginia.

Click on the photos to read each farmer's full blog post. I hope their stories inspire you to take risks, work hard, and follow your calling this week. Happy Monday! Thanks for reading!