Down on the Farm

Preserving Memories in Maine

“There once was a crooked barn”…okay, maybe it was a house in that rhyme, but once, while driving in central Maine, I saw this wonderful barn that reminded me of that rhyme. With all the different settling that had occurred it stopped me in my tracks. Seeing this photo today, in my archives, brought me back to an idea I wanted to share here.

My youngest sister owns a farm in Maine. (Her barn is in considerably better shape!) I often joked that she should write a book about her experiences living this farm life. She hasn’t, so I will give you very brief cliff notes here.

She always dreamt of having a farm, and living in Maine, and though it took her some time, she finally achieved that dream. The farm she and her husband bought came complete with about 32 head of bison (American Buffalo). In Maine, you say? Yes, in western Maine. I’ll spare you all the details but her husband’s cousin had decided to make the farm a bison farm, and then when he decided to quit, the opportunity to buy the farm couldn’t be passed up. I know they thought ‘how hard could it be, to raise bison’? Yet they were very willing to learn what it took. The first years were definitely challenging.

My sister, ever an achiever, also decided to put in a rather large produce garden so she and her husband would have good veggies year-round; judging by the photos I share below, she was doing something very right!!

Often, I would visit in summer - typically July, during the hottest and most humid time, and right when the harvesting of many things in the garden took place. We would sit in the kitchen shelling peas, or prepping broccoli to blanche, and we would talk. We shared memories of our youth together, reliving all the fun and the scary times. We talked about life in general, too. Whiling away the time with good conversation, laughter and tears. We were deep in the moment. Those moments have been incredibly special to me, and I hold them close to my heart.

She has lived on the farm now for many years, and her garden has grown and changed. The open plan she had, shown here, was working fine until one day the bison broke through the fence and wandered all around the upper area above the house. My sister had just gone up to get some lettuce for dinner, and came running back with eyes the size of dinner plates - really - and yelled “the bison are out!” Seriously, this happened, and it was never a good thing to have them roaming. After all, this was a small rural area in Maine, not the plains or the hills of Montana, and these bison were unpredictable animals. Needless to say, we had to work out a plan and we did, my sister, me, and I can’t remember who else that was there. (Her husband was away on business).

We learned that you do what you have to do, and in that moment it was all about ingenuity and teamwork. Every vehicle that was drivable was put deployed as a machinery ‘fence’ to keep the bison from wandering down the hill!

Bison twins were born on the farm, a very rare thing. It brought PBS out to film the farm, and indigenous people as well as many others came to see the calf.

Her farm has become a productive photo opportunity for me. Even while shelling peas and marveling at the perfect of those peas in their pods, I had to stop and make a picture of them against the bison fur of a skin she had draped over the sofa. To me, that photo represented the two large parts of her farming life, gardening and raising bison.

I wandered through the house, and the greenhouses, looking at the way the morning or afternoon light played on things. I was always relaxed there; all my busyness in my other life felt distant during my visits.

You might think that life is slowed down on a farm. Far from it! There are always chores to do - feed the chickens, gather eggs, weeding the garden, harvesting, checking on the bison, mowing the lawn. It was never ending! But that is what she loved, and I grew to love it too. There is something very special about this place where she lives. I feel it every time I’m there. The place drew my next older sister in as well. She and her husband would come to visit and stay for 3-4 weeks. It became harder for them to leave and they finally bought a house down in town.

This may seem like a rambling story, because I can’t really tell you all about everything that ‘went down’ at the farm, but it was and still is filled with wonderful rich moments. Moments that will stay with me forever. You see, everywhere you go, there are memories to be made with photography. Moments to capture.

Times when the entire family joined for the holidays, time with just me and my sisters. Time spent watching snowstorms, incredible sunsets, and sunrises; it has been one of the most magical parts of my life’s experiences.

This gallery is just a small sample of images that I’ve made while on the farm. The true reward is the memories that I have and will continue to create with each future visit!

A farm in Maine

Thank you for letting me share this with you. The take-away is that every time you use your camera, you make a moment stay. Do it, wherever you go! And thanks for being here.