Growing up in Rhode Island I would be lying if I said I wasn’t spoiled by the environment I was surrounded by. Living on a brackish pond with access to the ocean it was normal to take a boat out for a quick ride to Block Island or just to the beach for the day. At the age of 13 my parents made a decision to force me to get a job, only if it was for a few days a week I was obviously against the idea. Little did I know it was change my outlook on life for ever. A family friend offered me a job right on Ninigret Pond on the Ninigret Oyster Farm tending and helping to grow oysters from seed to market sized oysters. As I grew up I received more responsibilities on the farm eventually working full time as a farm manager. Within the last 8 summers I have been a part of something that most people don’t even know exists. I have seen animals ranging from tropical seahorses, a rare Atlantic Torpedo, juvenile fish and even a young sea turtle. All mostly following their food that is brought in with the tides. Beyond the animals I have seen some of the natural occurrences and tendencies that a farm can run into during the process of growing. Things like sets of mussels that suffocate the animals or tough icy winters that make getting to product involve a sledgehammer and thick wool lined waterproof gloves.

Stepping onto Fair Weather Farm I wasn’t sure what to expect but putting a pair of gloves on and working in the hot sun was nothing new for me. Seeing the farm was almost a sigh of relief for me. After listening to other people talking about how it felt to be on the farm and the sounds and sights that came with it, to some are probably intimidating but for me it is a bit of an escape. Being on an oyster farm your senses are overwhelmed by things the normal 20 something year old never has felt before. Turns chatter overhead fighting off other waterfowl that dare come near their nests. Minnows and eels beat in and out of cages and trays while feeding off sponge and avoiding larger predators. The smell of dried cages with razor sharp barnacles and dried weed waiting to get cleaned waft around distinctly through the air. There is an eerie but beautiful silenceness of 7 am on the water by yourself with no afternoon westerly wind or Connecticut boaters grinding over the unforeseen sandbars. The clarity that the mind feels when doing farm work on the water is identical to the familiar feeling I received when I pulled up to Fairhill.

Starting my day waking up before 6 am and running sprints then attending class all day then a lift, my life becomes overwhelmed with doing things to please others whether coaches, family or even pleasing myself. Being on the farm gives me an outlet to do mindless work that in the end has a large effect on other people. Professor Jenkins and I picked a large basket of potatoes, which honestly for me harvesting is, the least interesting part of farming. It really is the easiest part at least in all my experiences. The maturation process of the animals on the oyster farm is the hard part, giving all of the product the TLC it needs to grow to harvest size is where the help is truly needed. The knowledge of that gives me the feeling of my imminent return to the farm.

After reading Rowes book about Suburban Sprawl one specific topic really got my attention in which I can connect to in my time on farms, especially on the water, was his text on wetlands and estuaries. On page 160 Rowe references the early science of ecology and how estuaries were “one of the most fertile areas of the world”, with this I could not agree more. As an oyster farmer we run into a lot of trouble with seasonal homeowners having a problem with growing aquaculture farms on our specific estuary. With the homes so close to the coast they have a strong influence on the Rhode Island Coastal Resource Commission in the town that then affects the permits and regulations given. They complain about their aesthetic views and devaluation of their homes. These people are blind to the ecosystems that the farms yield and the “nutrient trap” that pond maintains. After talking about not knowing where our food comes from in class and the blind arrogance that our generation takes part of it is clear that these people are unaware where their exquisite high quality seafood comes from. When in reality it comes from the pristine waters they so closely overlook. With that being said my reflections give me a large sense of that arrogance in my life. It provides me another challenge that I can work towards that ultimately serves a bigger purpose in the world and honestly I think that’s what IT is truly about.