“The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.”
― Nelson Henderson
Open prairie. Rolling hills. Untouched. Native. Iowa. These were some of the words we used to describe the land we would eventually purchase in the fall of 2024. We knew it was something special. It needed a purpose. Like all land, it needed a family to continue to love on it and give it a little vision. A farm that had been in the same family for generations and would now be entrusted with us. While we are still refining that vision as we speak, we know this is more than a place to house a few extra goats. It is a place we hope will remain in our family for generations as well. And that requires intentionality.
We know this place is for our family, first and foremost, and we want our girls to know it has value for them as well-both now and in the future. So, after exploring the land, fishing the pond and going on “bear hunts” in the timber (a name we give to exploratory family hikes) we asked each of our daughters to choose a tree to plant on the farm.
They could choose any tree, deciduous or evergreen, fruit or flowering as long as it grew well in Iowa. We are zone 5b (USDA Hardiness Zone) and we know from our current farm, what grows well within city limits doesn’t always work in open, rural areas, so the hardier the tree, the more likely it will last. So we researched trees, looked at photos and spent the winter months deciding on which tree each of them would plant. Once their tree was selected, each girl had to choose a spot to plant that tree. Any spot. But it wasn’t just the one tree they had to plan for. This is a family tree. For each new addition to their family someday we will plant another tree around that same location. One day each location will become a special reminder symbolizing their own families, rooted in love. Family Trees.
Frankie (top left): Red Oak, Scarlett (top right): Red Maple, Charlee (bottom left): Magnolia, Elle (bottom right): Bur Oak
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