A Harvest

September 29, 2010 | 15 comments

Two windows cut holes through the backside of the barn. I stand underneath them, look up, shielding eyes from late-afternoon sun, and think about how those barn-eyes have seen much on this farm.

Lee man after
Lee man after
Lee man
has combed through these same golden rows, heavy with creamy pearls in pods.

And,

Lee woman after
Lee woman after
Lee woman
has stood here to watch her man take the year’s first autumn swipe at the fields.

I stand witness to a century-old story. My Lee man — the only one left on this farm — finds his place at the seat of a John Deere combine. I stand underneath shadowy eyes of an old barn, kick at dirt clods, and wait for my favorite farmer to crest the slope. He’s headed my way, spinning harvest dust in a timeless rite of passage.

Today, we harvest.

The girls and I have come for the inaugural pass through these fields, tended for 100 years by Lee men named Ole, then his son Milo, then his son Paul, then his son Scott.

Scott is the one I call my favorite farmer. He’s the one who assured us all last year, when an early-season snow delayed harvest until late October. He’s a man of straightforward word and thought. His repeated refrain is this: “God’s got it.”

This year, we harvest early. And the soybeans are just perfect for the pickin’.

He ambles over to us with the burly combine. “Wanna ride?”

The girls race for the stairs. I call out: “Is there room for me, too?”

He waves me aboard.

We head east through luminous fields and watch combine teeth chew through pod-laden stalks. Yield looks promising, my favorite farmer says. Weather forecast couldn’t be better.

I shake my head in grateful disbelief, and I remember the snow … all the snow.

“By the time you get back from Texas, there won’t be a whole lot of soybeans left in this county,” he says, clutching the wheel, with a daughter’s hands wrapped around his.

The harvest reel will spin and spin, and I will fly south to Texas. I swallow hard. Is this guilt I’m feeling? At harvest, I’m really going to leave him to tend to fields and to children? At harvest???

But he says, By all means, go! And Grandma Joyce will help. And I whisper thanks for this undeserved grace …

***

I’ll leave early this morning, before sun rises over these harvest-ready fields. I’ll fly from Iowa to Texas to spend a weekend with these people — this team of High Calling writers and editors . For the next few days, we will plan and think and dream and write … and worship.

And I wonder this:

Is this a time to plant? Or a harvest?

For me? Perhaps mostly, just to grow.

I am a writer and a pilgrim, still so green, barely shooting up from the ground. And I whisper to the Father again, so grateful for the grace of friends whose hands I have not shook, nor eyes seen, nor laughter heard. Yet I love them all the same. They are friends, tending to fields of grace in New York and St. Louis and Canada and Indiana and Lincoln, Neb., and other places.

And they help me grow.

And my favorite farmer helps me grow.

And my sweet girls help me grow.

And you, dear friend? You help me grow.

And one day … yes one day … I shall harvest.

“God’s got it.”

I hope to post here a time or two from Laity Lodge in Texas, during our writers retreat with High Calling editors. If not, I shall see you next Monday. And maybe, I will have grown just a little bit taller by then?

by | September 29, 2010 | 15 comments

15 Comments

  1. n. davis rosback

    God's got it…

    🙂

    Reply
  2. Rebecca (me!)

    AWESOME! My husband wants to farm…as his family did….we're looking for land, now….Blessings…and yes, God's got it!

    Reply
  3. Wendy Paine Miller

    I love being reminded God's got it here.

    That book I interviewed for will probably never be published, but I love that it connected us the way it did.

    ~ Wendy

    Reply
  4. RCUBEs

    Praying for the Lord to protect you and your family as you chose to follow His leading. Praying for His discernment and wisdom for you to discover what's in store for you. "Fields of grace…" so awesome to hear it! God bless.

    Reply
  5. Tina aka forrestina vintage

    Lovely words…have a superb journey–before, during and after Texas.

    Reply
  6. jasons

    Beautiful words and pictures, Jennifer. Thankful that the seeds we plant in Him are His to nourish, and the harvest is always secure. Love it…

    Reply
  7. KJ

    Have fun!

    Reply
  8. Rebecca Ramsey

    I love that. God's got it. I need to make it into a bumper sticker and stick it on my forehead!
    Beautiful post. Really beautiful.

    Reply
  9. Connie Mace

    And here I am on my last night in Texas. Emergency flight here two weeks ago for my mama. Amazing miracles happened here.

    Home to Washington tomorrow…GOD's got it here…and He's got it there too…

    Reply
  10. Shirl

    What a beautiful word: God's got it! Lifts my soul! Beautiful snippet of your life…beautiful photography! I love pictures that tell a story!

    Reply
  11. Jennifer

    Generations of planting, watering, and harvesting–isn't that what we all want for our families in the spiritual realm? Love this time of year.

    Reply
  12. Sandra Heska King

    My husband's the 6th generation King on this farm. But farming isn't in his blood. We rent on shares. Makes me kind of sad.

    Beautiful writing and photos, girlfriend.

    Reply
  13. Amy Sullivan

    First of all, you actually make farming looking fun. This is very difficult to do since I think farming is beautiful, but I wouldn't say fun. But when I look at your pictures, I want to come on over and learn about soybeans.

    I hope your trip is wonderful. I'm so glad I found HCB, and I'm so glad HCB found you, as you add so much to the community.

    Reply
  14. Megan Willome

    Beautiful post! And believe me, you're the one who will be harvested while you're down at Laity. It's my favorite place on earth.

    Reply
  15. elaine @ peace for the journey

    Beautiful.

    peace~elaine

    Reply

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