Guest Blog: A Harvest of Friends

Mette, a WWOOFer at Crazy View Farm, wrote a reflection of her experience on the farm and in Montana for our blog.


A Harvest of Friends

Luck struck when the wonderful people at CVF decided to take a chance on two Norwegian wwoofer's this summer. What I was hoping for as I left home was to learn about organic farming, life in Montana and to create new friendships. It only took me a couple of hours to see that I had ended up in the right place. The very right place.

Learning about organic farming came naturally, I was on my knees in the gardens the first day and my fingernails were stained from that day on. Picking carrots from a soil of clay was a challenging project, but I appreciated diving into it(literally). My questions were always answered right away and I would soon see that a farmer's job is full time; try rest when you have heaps of leaves to keep alive in dramatic Montana weather. Add to that keeping the dogs from running away, spending time with the horses, cook food, clean the house, make it in time to the Farmers Market's, build a hoop house, fishing duck eggs out of a pool, check in on a hen persistent to lay on eggs, taking care of approx 7 wwoofer's, and the list goes on and on. As Billy put it; "Well, there is no shortage on things to do!". 

The lessons of life in Montana came more sporadic. From experiencing it myself, going from a hot sunny day to a freezing night or selling veggies at the market. It also came through the stories we were told around the dinner table or driving around the area.
Amongst other things, Billy showed us around the ranch he works at which gave us an insight to what many rancher's daily life is about; cattle, machines and an open space is what first comes to mind. And Laurie would always do her best to be flexible about our days off if we had an opportunity to experience something.

One of the most memorable experiences for me was gathering cattle on horseback. Growing up watching Bonanza that had been a life long dream of mine. The farrier in town also brought me two horses to take care of, and that is fighting for top billing! Another thing that has to be mentioned is our last night at the farm. The new hoop house was transformed with colorful lights and we had an amazing dinner out there. Music and poems and a great memory! Work related, I think the best experience was to see the whole process, from picking a leaf and follow it all the way to see who ended up buying it.

Being my first wwoofing experience I definitely learned a lot that I will take with me to the next farm. It's hard work and if you are going to do something you have to it all the way. At the same time a farmer has to choose his or her battles. Let something go, and focus on doing what you have chosen to do well.

Wwoofing added to my life goals and direction in a couple of ways. It made me realize that I have the opportunity to grow some of my own food at home, and a new goal now is to have a garden. Another way it influenced me was in terms of my career. I am going to study medicine and it opened my eyes to how important nutrition is and more alternative ways of treating patients.

A good advice if you're so lucky to be going to CVF is to embrace it and enjoy it while you can. Pick Laurie and Billy's brains and you'll find yourself with a wealth of information and some jokes to go with that!

I could go on for a long while, but I'll round up with what for me was the most important. The people I was so lucky to work with! They've inspired me more than most, taught me a whole lot, been patient, open, interested and warm. I feel so privileged who can call the people at CVF my friends.

Mette Pauline


You can read more about Mette's adventures in the States and WWOOFing at http://norwegianscrossing.blogspot.com/