Noonday Notes, Issue 1

Hello friends,

This might become a bi-weekly rhythm — or maybe just an occasional note. A college roommate of mine, a lifelong farmer in Maine, sends out a handwritten letter each month that she has photocopied. It’s often farm musings from up north. I don’t know who all gets it, but I do — and it’s always a gift. Maybe this will be something like that.

Recently, I was going through some of my old typewriter poetry and found myself wanting to write again. I don’t have a grand plan or a polished newsletter strategy…yet. But I do have a growing sense that something good is happening in this era or dare I say “season” I am in. And when I pay attention — to the ground, to the seasons, to the work of my hands, and to our creator, I feel the good works that have been prepared beforehand.

You might find in these notes some reflections from the garden, places where scripture has met me whilst in the garden, and recipes. You might find a poem or a piece of my own story, as a new believer. Most likely, you’ll find garden and nature metaphors because nature has always been part of my journey. It helps me see God’s work in my life and to understand that grace often grows slowly, quietly, and underground, until one day it’s harvest time! More on that to come.

Lately, I’ve been sitting with Genesis 2:15:

“The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.”

Work. Before the fall, before sin. Before the thorns, before the sweat of the brow. The garden — and the work in it — were not punishment, but a gift. It hits me deep that Adam’s first calling was not to produce or perform, but to work and keep. Each morning as I harvest, I remember that work can still be sacred. Especially when done in the presence of the One who first planted a garden.

And good works are happening — Noonday Farms is now feeding four households with weekly harvests, and we could probably take on two to four more. It’s humbling and amazing to see an idea planted in prayer begin to take root and truly work.

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