Underlined: The Dirty Life by Kristin Kimball

My mom suggested this book to me.  I loved it for many reasons.  I used to always say, "I just want to get out of the city and live on a farm and grow my own food and live the simple life."  To this, the author would say, you want a garden.  This book uncovers the romanticism behind living off the land.  Farming is incredibly difficult work, which is no secret, but it seems that with the thousands of acres of land that have been sold off and turned into suburbs, many people have this romantic idea about farming.  And while it is beautiful and lovely, it is also very difficult and draining hard work.

My youngest brother has worked on several different farms over the past few years.  A vineyard in Vermont, vegetable farms in Portland, a dairy in Vermont, and now a farm in Illinois.  That kid is an incredibly hard worker.  I was reading this book when I went to stay with my parents, and made a visit to the farm he works at.  It was fun to see him and his girlfriend come home in the evening, covered in dirt and sweat, holding loads of greens they grew.  They would go straight to their garden here, work a bit more, and then cook dinner with the food they have been growing. 

Each night I would go up to the dark room in the log cabin where my baby was sleeping, turn on my book light and read about The Dirty Life while my farmer brother was sleeping across the hall and waking up early to tend to the earth.
The line I liked most from this book was the very last line, so this is a spoiler alert for those of you who may read it.  It gives nothing away, but I know some people, including myself, find the last line of a book a bit sacred, and I don't want to spoil anything for anyone.

Unknown outpaces known like to do outpaces done.  These acres are a world.  What answers has the ground offered?  Only the notion that there are answers.  Underlying soil is bedrock, and if you dig deep enough, you'll hit it.  That's the closest I've come to surety, and it is enough for me.

*image from here