Senwes Scenario Desember 2015 / Januarie 2016 | Page 60
•••
F UT UR E F OC U S
JENNY MATHEWS
FOR EVERYTHING UNDER THE
SUN THERE IS A SEASON…
W
e have many
opportunities presented
to us throughout the span of our
lives. The choices we make in
those moments often have the
power to determine the course
of many lives. How many of us
are adequately in tune with what
is truly important to make the
right decisions and recognise
precious moments? An old
wisdom says, ‘We all have the
freedom to choose; but we are
not free from the consequences
of those choices!’ For sure living
and learning is about committed
hard work and effort - but it’s also
about relationships and magical
moments of happiness! How we
choose to bring balance into living
and loving is a power we hold in
our own hands and yes… there IS
an appointed time for everything
under the sun – even for farmers!
A TIME TO PLANT…
Not long ago we decided to
allow the last of our off-spring to
join us in the farming business.
Now an exciting and challenging
season has begun with all our
sons bringing new ideas to the
table and boundless energy to
the operations. I have gone from
cooking small breakfasts for two,
to preparing massive slap-up
breakfasts for hungry young men;
to dealing with the drama of
allergic reactions to bee stings and
doctoring fingers sliced by angle
grinders - life is a kaleidoscope of
voices and activity and is quite
58
I HELD A MOMENT IN MY HAND, BRILLIANT AS A
STAR, FRAGILE AS A FLOWER, A TINY SLIVER OF
ONE HOUR. I DROPPED IT CARELESSLY, AH, I DIDN’T
KNOW - I HELD OPPORTUNITY! - HAZEL LEE
‘deliciously’ chaotic some days!
What if he had said NO…?
I often pause to wonder how
different things could have been
if my husband had told the boys
that there was no room for them
on the farm because agriculture
is under too much pressure, both
politically and economically, and
they must rather pursue other
career paths. I would be lying
if I did not admit to sometimes
worrying about their choices to
farm, but I also know two very
important things: 1) That I would
not be loving the extended quiet
hours alone on the farm waiting
for occasional visits from our
children and 2) That they are
motivated and happy to go to
work every day - what a privilege!
A TIME TO UPROOT THAT
WHICH WAS PLANTED…
At the other end of life’s journey,
I am tasked this week with
helping my parents, who are
now in their eighties, to pack
up their farm house and sort
through a life time of memories
in preparation for their move to
a town where they feel they will
be better off into their old age,
closer to amenities and medical
care… This is certainly a head
decision, not a heart one, because
they are finding it difficult - not
only because of down-sizing, but
because it’s painful to close the
door on an industrious, successful
Desember 2015/Januarie 2016 • SENWES Scenario
career which saw my Dad move
from pharmacist to farmer. What if
my Dad hadn’t been brave enough
to make a dramatic career change…?
The past decades on the farm have
been a very happy season of their
lives. They have loved the peace and
tranquility of their farm and have
delighted in clambering across the
hills enveloped by majestic views of
rolling green hills and trout dams,
sharing picnics with friends and
family soaking up ever-changing
vistas of the moody Drakensberg in
the distance. They have lived close
to Nature and felt the rhythms of
the seasons. Winter snowfalls have
kept them housebound without
heat or electricity; trapped because
ancient trees have bowed and
broken under the weight of the
heavy snows blocking their routes to
the district road. They have watched
with wide-eyed fear as runaway fires
travelled furiously across dry grazing
lands to devour entire forests, angry
flames licking up tall trees. And they
have gloried in peaceful, golden
sunsets while watching swallows
zipping across colour-washed skies.
They have been incredible role
models, teaching their children and
grandchildren to treasure the simple
yet marvellous, magical moments
in time - opening our eyes to the
wonder of a tiny bird hatching,
a timid bush buck venturing
from the forest or the endless
delight of harvesting vegetables
grown in the kitchen garden.