From Golfer to Farmer
Hey everyone! I have never written a blog, but I have an interesting journey I must share. My story begins back in 2018 when I was recruited to play Division 1 golf at Liberty University. This brought me from the flat plains of Ohio to the mighty Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. I immediately fell in love with the beautiful landscape and radiant sunsets each evening. I quickly realized I had found my new home.
From August 2018 to May of 2022 my life revolved around golf. Almost every day I would either practice at a driving range or go to a golf course to further my golf skills. One of my favorite aspects of golf was the ability to be outside and be a part of nature. I loved seeing all the different shades of green embedded in the grass, trees, plants, and other vegetation. The golf course always offered a new perspective of nature as each golf hole was different and not like any other hole. This aspect of golf fulfilled my desire to be a part of nature and the outdoors.
Fast Forward to the summer of 2022 to when I just finished school at Liberty University and was saying goodbye to my golf career. I loved the game of golf, but I realized it was time for me to hang up the golf sticks. I was very unsure what path I would be taken on at this point in my life. Fortunately, my close friends just established a farm in Forest, Virginia called Maranatha Farms giving me the opportunity to come work for them. I hesitated as I was a city slicker with very little experience in the farming or agriculture industries. Eventually, I took them up on the offer and began working for them in what I thought would be a brief experience.
Let me make it clear that I was not a farmer by any stretch of the imagination. I was accustomed to the country club lifestyle where my hands and clothes stayed clean, and any traces of dirt were quickly eradicated from my clothes or body. Nevertheless, I attempted to embrace the farm life and went headfirst into this new adventure. I was not prepared for what all this adventure would entail.
Maranatha Farms was an ideal environment to begin this adventure. Maranatha Farms provided me with the ability to learn and acquire farming knowledge. Each day on the farm presented new obstacles or adventures that helped shape me into the farmer I am today. One of my first days I was taught how to operate a tractor which sounds simple until you are on top of a massive piece of machinery. Initially, I was nervous driving it but within a couple weeks I was comfortably driving and began bush hogging some of the fields. Bush hogging was a new concept to me and is great for clearing land full of brush, weeds, or any invasive vegetation. This allows the field to be better suited for growing grass for our animals.
I experienced many “firsts” at Maranatha Farms from running our Charolais cows through the headgate to birthing pigs to herding a flock of sheep to driving a tractor like I talked about above. Each of these new experiences helped refine my skills as a farmer.
There are many aspects to the farm to love-The topography is one of my favorite features of Maranatha Farms. Maranatha Farms is located on rolling hills adjacent to the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Blue Ridge Mountains are a perfect backdrop to the rolling hills, trees, and water sources on the property. In the front portion of the property is a pond and on the backend of the property is Elk creek. The blue water from Elk creek offers a tranquil oasis to the farm compared to the normal hustle and bustle. Each morning I love watching the sunrise over the mountains on one side of the property. In the evening, the sun sets on the opposite end of the property and the last bit of light creeps through the mountain range. We are blessed to be able to see the sky light up with gorgeous colors every single day with a unique masterpiece. The sky has a lasting glow long after sunset and I find it difficult to find a better closing to the day. From beginning to end, each day provides marvelous sights. The shades of green that I had loved so much when I played golf were even more prevalent at Maranatha.
I may not have chosen the farmer's life, but it has clearly chosen me, and I am all in on embracing farming every step of the way.
