Designing Our Lives in 2021

Visualizing Our Lives 

Through symbols, art, and our minds, people can imagine and create the world we want to be in. I know, that may sound like some super voodoo stuff; however, there’s actually a lot to be said about this mindset and approach (Debbie Millman, Seth Godin). We all just made it through a tough year in 2020, and as we start off 2021 in the cold, snowy winter here in the north – we’re in this moment visualizing and imagining what this year may bring on the farm. Visualizing and working toward what we want is a powerful force that can move individuals and communities to happier and healthier ways of living. We’re all capable of doing this. Farmer’s are always doing this, and I picked up on this from my parents at an early age growing up on the farm. 

By the time I was 12, I decided that I was going to go to college on a basketball scholarship. I created vision boards on the ceiling above my bed with cut outs of the US Women’s Olympic Basketball Team and Pat Summit’s Lady Vols so the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes each morning were the people I wanted to be like (e.g. Dawn Staley, Chamique Holdsclaw, Sheryl Swoopes). As I spent every extra minute over the next 6 years training to get a basketball scholarship, a coach once taught me how to visualize making every free throw I ever shot and by the time I graduated high school I was shooting 92% from the line. Eventually, I did get that basketball scholarship and all the amazing opportunities and education that came along with it. I learned early the power of visualization. So, you could say symbols and imagery are an important aspect in my life. 

Imagery and visualization are more important than we may sometimes realize. Look no further than Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. to see the human need for consuming visual wonder and sharing experiences. When Ben and I first imagined Firefly Fields, our goal was to apply our skills, experiences, and passions together to build our dream farm and life outside the confines of the university. We eventually realized by adding our own ideas to the foundation my parents started more than 40 years ago on the farm, we could support the family legacy and the sustainable food movement toward delicious food that is good for people, the environment, and all living things. We launched Firefly Fields in November of 2018, but the visual we imagined had its first ‘doodle draft’ way before (July of 2017) we knew exactly what we wanted to do. 

Designing Firefly Fields’ Logo 

There are multiple sayings along the lines of ‘Visualize what you want to realize.’ Basically, it’s moving from a vague idea to a clear image of what you want and slowly doing the work to get you to that place you imagined. Looking back on our first doodle to the final logo for Firefly Fields, you can see how Ben and I’s ideas evolved from knowing we wanted to do something related to our professional fields to something more clearly defined about how we would use our training with what we wanted to do with the farm – even the font became more bold and clear with time!  

To us, the Firefly Fields logo is our FLAGSHIP IMAGE. The name ‘Firefly Fields’ itself is the human component you see on a landscape with soil, water, and natural resources representing the environment. On the environmental landscape, you notice the furrow lines on the curved surface indicating agriculture and the cultivation of food. But, not all the natural resources are being used for agriculture – that’s an important distinction. The land provides more ecosystem services beyond food cultivation such as pollination, water filtration, wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration, etc. Then into the sky you see the abstract circles of life or the fireflies lighting the path as our biological indicators of a healthy system. #LoftyGoals  

Other Imagery and Symbolism 

When we first started thinking about bottling and selling our honey – we did a lot of research. Despite all the research-based guidelines strongly discouraging the use of the honey bee image on a label (because it would be off-putting to a consumer to see an insect on a jar), we were determined to give credit where credit was due and put a mostly anatomically correct honey bee on the jar. Fast forward, we have sold out of our honey for 2020! Our goal is a great product that includes a connection with its maker. Not only does the honey bee live strong on our label, all our grain and bean products also have images of the seed that made the crop connecting the eater to the food’s origin. 

Visualizing and sketching the design for our farmer’s market booth was a blast! While we can’t bring every customer to the farm, we can try to bring the farm to the customer. That was our goal, anyway! So we printed a beautiful picture of the farm on a drop cloth while the cover crop of red clover was in bloom (which provides a great wind break and sun shade, BTW). Thankfully, we had access to some kind builders (Ben, his father, and brother) to make us shelves and tables, and voila! We realized the image we imagined and people can get a feel for what the farm is like.   

Building a Vision for Healthy Food, People, and the Environment 

Through our online shop, kitchen, and blog, we have tried to maintain this consistent feel for what we do and what we think is most important. We want to share our wonder, love, and experiences we have with food, the environment, and people by connecting you to images from our farm that bring you closer to the products and vision we love. Our hope is that we are able to share with you where we are, what it looks like, and how it feels to us. But also, what we aspire to become. When it comes down to it, we’re pretty simple. We believe all the beauty, solutions, and story we need can be discovered right here right now. And, if we visualize and move together toward healthier food systems that produce healthy food while supporting people and the environment – we might just realize this lofty goal together for a better world. 

What do you think? What are some of your visions for 2021 and beyond?