Annual Newsletter 2010

Dear Friends, A sliver of the moon breaks through the haze. The quiet of early eve is beguiling. It is calming. Rudy does not stir. Yet, a storm brews. It refreshes the day, but puts us on watch for extremes. Elderberries are flush with splendor. Showy blossoms are the highlight in the trees north of our home. The welcoming green we anticipate in March is in full force.

Adrianne continues to illuminate Minneapolis. Her grandmothers would both glow with pride in her quest for perfection-be it in the office or in her relationships. Her upcoming trek to Jakarta, Indonesia to meet her friend Tom’s family does not surprise us, but the other side of the world generates anxiety.

Ben married Brooke in Phoenix this past November. What an emotional journey for us all, for it was “beyond all measure.” We revel in their life together as they make the right choices in creating something of great beauty. Brooke is the essence of dreams.

Letting go of our grown children is challenging. Weekly calls and precious notes breech parental longings as change fills their lives. No matter how old Mum and Dad are, we always look for signs of quality and improvement in our children. Yet, it is not their duty to please us, only to enrich their own happiness. So it is.

S. Freud said that the two most important things in life are love and work. How they are stacked is the perpetual dilemma. Growing up on a family farm “empowers the spirit” · for “it speaks of history and our hopes” – reminding us that prosperity has little to do with the accumulation of things, but of a family uniting in the warmth of affection.

With Mac and Amy and the constant support of Rita, Anita, Amy, Linda, Sarah, Carly we have opened the new winery. It is a comforting site to sit and relax. Come and share a moment_with us.

We can smell the season now. Here is the outlook:

June 20-July 15 Sweet Cherries
July 1-5 First peaches & Apricots
August 7-10 Red Haven Peaches
August 10 -15 First White Peaches & Nectarines
August 15-Sept. 10 Plums
August 25 -Oct. 10 Pears
September 1 First Cider
Sept. 10-15 Gala & Honeycrisp/Pick your own
Oct. 5-10 Cameo & Fuji Apples/Pumpkins

Hope to see you soon!

The Gammie Family

Annual Newsletter 2008

Dear Friends,
The early July mom is tranquil. Independence begins in the land. Yet taking time to be festive is challenging for the urgency of a growing world is at a peak. Not a time to sit and ponder, but to buildup sweat equity. Pausing is critical.

Bill’s dad grasped one of the defining moment of each spring when we can capture the scent of apple blossoms. Though brief, its sweetness endures as the days unfurl. How often the spirit of our mothers and fathers allows us to gather the drive for the next day. We often remember the best times with Ben and Adrianne when we would work together-whether it was training a young tree, coping with an aggravating tractor, or selling peaches to a farm friend in the market. To be marked by the grime of a long day may well be a benchmark that reveals the genuineness of our overriding love.

There is a peculiar obligation we all acquire-to banter about the weather, the price of gas or the direction our children are taking. City lights continue to warm the coolest nights for Adrianne and Ben. Their evolving lives make Minneapolis and Austin interesting at times for Bill and I. Our lives will always be highlighted by their lives. What gives us the most pleasure is that they still call Mason Road home. A Labor Day homecoming for them, perhaps.

We had our first grape harvest last September. Mac, our partner and award winning winemaker, produced a unique blend that can now be enjoyed under the pin oaks here at the farm. We anticipate establishing a winery down the road and up the hill in the near future. Here everyone will be able to enjoy Mac’s wines in gentler setting.

Garrison Kellar quipped a couple Saturdays ago as summer emerges, “it’s time to do something worthwhile. Eat a ripe peach.” He may be anticipating that joy a bit early, but we are headed in that direction.

HERE’S WHAT YOU HAVE TO LOOK FORWARD TO THIS YEAR

June 20-July 15 Sweet Cherries
July 15-20 First Peaches and Apricots (sweetcorn and tomatoes too)
August 15 -20 Red Haven Peaches (1st freestone)
August 18 -20 First White Peaches
August 25 -Sept. 20 Plums
August 25 Pears
Sept. 15-20 Gala & Honeycrisp Apricots
Sept. 20-25 Last of Peaches
Sept. 15-20 Fall Apples/Pick your own begins
Oct. 5-31 Pumpkins
Oct. 15-20 Cameo & Fuji Apples

Annual Newsletter 2006

Dear friends,
Early rising is not characteristic of our clan. This day differs. There is a special sweetness that waffles across the morning wetness. Is there enough time to be festive as the urgency of the season builds? Independence begins on the land. We will pay tribute to our heritage and to our tomorrows.

How well we all know that the saga of parenting never wanes. Like the anticipation of a new growing season, “growing up” does not lessen the anxiety of our children’s adulthood.

The stakes become higher. Career choices, new relationships, making time for fun – all diverging roads that can never be traveled alone. Adrianne’s recent graduation from the University of Cincinnati has launched her on a job search that rattles the balance of college routine. Ben continues his sojourn in Texas but drops hints that changes may be coming.

As Mom & Dad we are poised to watch and listen and understand. Downplay the little worries, sooth the big ones. Bill’s Uncle Leonard would say, “What can’t be cured must be endured.” If summer had no other reason for being, we would celebrate it as the time of the ripe peach.

Our wine making friends, the McLellands, continue to blossom. Mac recently received several medals for his creations from the Ohio Wine Competition. The winery is open. Bill brought in the first peach last evening.

We anticipate renewing your friendship. Here’s what to expect this season:

July 10 – 15 First peaches (cling) and apricots
July 20 – Sept. 10 Nectarines
Aug.10 – 15 Red Haven begin (freestone)
Aug. 15 First white peaches
Aug. 20 – Sept. 15 Plums
Aug. 30 Pears begin
Sept. 10 – 15 Gala and Honeycrisp apples begin
Sept. 15 – 20 last of peaches/First of cider
Sept. 15 Fall apples/pick-your-own apples begins
Oct. 5 – 31 Pick-your-own pumpkins
Oct. 15- -20 Cameo and Fugi apples

Hope to see you soon!

The Gammie Family