Humbled by Our Vulnerability

On the Farm . . . what's happening this week (6/29/15) in words and pictures

Monday morning we fretted about the coming storm. Warnings were being issued on the radio as well as on our phones. Would there be damage to our crops in the field? Beans, peas, cucumbers and summer squash are all flowering. Little green tomatoes and peppers are appearing. Cauliflower and more broccoli heads are starting to form and newly transplanted head lettuce and scallions are taking root. Hard rain, driving winds and hail could all wreak havoc.

Then the storm hit. Some equipment was blown out of our washstand area, the frame of the tent was bent and mud and dirt was washed into the barn. The transplants were pounded by the sheets of rain but looked ok. The produce was fine. We were relieved.

By the next morning we learned a neighbor a mile away as the crow flies suffered severe damage to his farm. Two buildings were blown down. His grain bin was thrown in the air taking off the top of the windmill, and the silo twisted leaving it unstable.

Bill's nephew and family live outside of Hollandale, and the 70 mph straight-line winds threw the trampoline in the yard at their home causing several windows to break, ripping the ridge cap off the house and damaging fascia. Some of the flying glass cut their son's cheek. Twelve trees were snapped off in the pasture down the hill from their home. Power was out a few hours, but others in the area were still waiting for it to be back on Tuesday morning.

Bill and I felt humbled. We were concerned about our vegetables not thinking about the potential harm to our home, family and friends. Nature reminded us of our vulnerability. We are thankful that no one was seriously hurt.

Skunk update: The family disappeared. Go figure? Bill held one of the babies when the kids showed him the den. Maybe that was enough to make the mother move them somewhere else. It seems we have unwittingly avoided our rematch with a skunk family . . . at least for now.