I wonder how many people have gotten married on this farm? It has been a farm for a long time, and I hope it was always loved enough for celebration. And before that colonial time, I'd like to imagine that the people who were here also may have loved this spot in the woods next to the creek as much as we do, and felt like a commitment made there was made more deeply because of being next to the water and under the trees.
After close to 19 years of being deeply committed as friends, Kevin and I got married on the farm. It was the day of winter solstice, the day with the shortest hours of daylight and the longest of hours of darkness, and the tipping point for when the moments of light will increase for the next six months. We hope our lives together will be like that, with increasing brightness. The rain stopped just in time for us and our close family and dearest friends to walk through the dripping woods, tiptoeing through the mud and balancing on boards over the puddles. It was as if everyone had to walk down the aisle, but the aisle was a hike through a rain scrubbed, refreshed woods. The storm had ridden in on a warm front, so we were warm, and the rain had been intense, so the creek was high. Our ceremony was short. So many of our commitments to one another have been made gradually, a conversation at a time, a season at a time. It will probably keep being that way. This was just one moment on our timeline to make that promise to everyone else too, that we would honor and keep, have and hold, and they could count on it.
We then trekked out of the woods and into the cozy, festively decorated new greenhouse to eat drink and be merry. Pics below! If it hadn't stopped raining in time, we would have had the ceremony in front of the tractor!
One thing I never got organized enough to do was to ask our family for their advice in marriage. I know there are so many of you that read this every week, and are also part of our family, connected by the very basic need to be nourished and to feel community- so can I ask you to give us advice? What makes this work?
This has been a very, very, Jess-and-Kevin centered bit of communication, so I want to ask you to remember your other wonderful farmers who kept the whole show on the road while a wedding was being planned and pulled off! I should also recognize how much the holiday diet is a bizarre experience for the body! I have the feeling that Chinese cabbage (aka napa cabbage) is the polar opposite of all the cookies I've been eating, so I'm using it as an antidote. Join me! Here is a recipe suggestion:
Spicy Chinese Cabbage
1 head Chinese Cabbage sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 onion, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil1 tbsp Sriracha (to taste)
1 tbso white wine or rice vinegar
½ tsp salt
Heat olive oil in skillet on medium heat. Add sriracha and stir. Add garlic and onion, stir until fragrant, then add Chinese cabbage. Stir fry one minute, splash on vinegar, sprinkle on the salt, cover, and cook three more minutes. Serve hot over rice.
Eat well, enjoy your holidays,
Jess
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