Like all pieces of property, farms are segments of life in all forms, and the comforting and connecting fact is that all properties represent similar factors in our decisions to own those properties. One could ask, “Why do you own your land?” The great truth about that question is that everyone can answer it, because all people can be themselves in their surrounding area, whether it is literal, metaphorical, or both! For our family, our farm sits on 55 beautiful acres, and it naturally gives us lots of opportunities to test our knowledge and charisma (and energy!) regarding the resources it boasts, which is why we love our land. As Zach puts it, “Owning a farm is like connecting to nature to treat it equally”! But nature goes about its ways in circumstances that could irritate the farm-owner, and voila! The last few days we have noticed a slight problem on our land! Did we sigh and complain a bit? Yes, we all can agree on that. But did we take our role as farmers to make a simple, effective solution? Yes, yes!
Here is the dilemma: There is a stream, which happens to feed into the much larger Miller Creek (which itself meanders to the Susquehanna River—amazing!) that, since the time we moved here three years ago, has flowed alongside a walking trail we commonly take to reach Miller Creek, deep in the woods of our property. Although the stream had a tiny portion that trickled underneath the branch-and stone-garnished bank and onto the path, it was hardly a nuisance considering the fact that the rushing water was over eight feet from the trail! However, since last fall, which was almost unbearably wet due to the very real effects of climate change, the indignant water pushed past the natural barrier and flooded a section of the walking trail in a still-flowing sequence! Unfortunately, like how people follow the direction of the crowds ahead, the previously-supplied stream bed was abandoned as the water found new turf—our trail! This was an expansive issue for us, as the trail probably is the most sought-after pick for both morning and evening (courtesy of Farm-Dog Denny, whose paw shot up, remembering the excellent aromas of deer trails)! So, what were we going to do? Despite the welcomingly colder winter (last winter’s global warming audition was atrocious!), we know that our semi-frozen streams will break up very soon, meaning that our time to alter the water while it is docile is short. So, what better thing to do on “Leap Day” than gently change our water system for the better—to LEAP with joy?
Today, Chris, Zach, and Denny set out with a few unpretentious tools—some metal straight rakes, two differently-sized shovels, and some waterproof gloves. Once they got to the “scene of the crime”, they decided to immediately start raking the wedged stones inhabiting the original stream bed, so more water would loosen from their grasp. Luckily, a small stream was running past the rushing “drop of doom” to the walking path, so Chris and Zach had a slight asset, and expectantly, more gushes of water swept onto the original stream as their rakes clutched the remaining, bottom-dwelling stones! The reason Chris and Zach chose to work with redirecting the water first, rather than compressing the movement on the nuisance stream, was apparent in the way the deteriorating bank was formatted—if they had mistakenly corroded the bank even more so while tampering with the flow, then no benefits would have been created! Their work immediately helped, and soon enough, the flow of water down the “drop of doom” had greatly decreased, and the original stream was busily moving again, with a stronger bank via the stones stranded from the prodding of the rakes!
We do not know how the “nuisance stream” will fare come a few weeks, when more water will reach the bed despite our attempts! However, there are two positive influencers—one is that we already have ceased the increasing power of it, and two is that there is a very wild wetlands habitat next to the “healing” walking trail, so perhaps by the end of spring the water can drain into the habitat. Nonetheless, we certainly exemplified our roles as farmers today, and our land certainly gave us a casual ecology lesson we will never forget!
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