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www.thelandonline.com — “Where Farm and Family Meet”
THE LAND — MAY 27/JUNE 3, 2022
Haspel’s at-home grocery is entertaining and informative You have a lot on your plate. What, with the kids and school, getting back to normal, pent-up socializing, paying bills and … yikes, those food prices! You’re wondering if maybe it’s time for that diet you’ve been saying you’ll go on, or some old-timey recipes from Great-Grandma. Or maybe you should read “To Boldly Grow” by Tamar Haspel and eat a little closer to home. Shortly after Tamar Haspel married her husband, Kevin, he told her he wanted to plant a garden on the roof of their Manhattan apartment building. For weeks they schlepped dirt and colorful containers skyward; and that summer, they had the best tomatoes Haspel had ever tasted. Consequently, when they bought their house and two acres on Cape Cod some time later, they both knew that gardening was a for-sure. In fact, Haspel suggested, why not try to eat “first-hand food” (dinner they didn’t buy from a store) every day for an entire year? Immediately, there was a learning curve: they had to know what kind of soil they had in order to know what they could grow. Neighbors helped with that information and they taught Haspel about cold frames, which are often necessary in New England gardens. This satisfied her for a while until she learned about perennial vegetables, which weren’t necessarily satisfying. The couple considered going organic, but the bugs won that battle until chickens arrived at the tiny farm. Eggs were perfect first-hand
“To Boldly Grow: Finding Joy, Adventure, and Dinner in Your Own Backyard” by Tamar Haspel c.2022, Putnam $26. 272 pages food. Later, the chickens would be, too — but not until By Terri Schlichenmeyer after a heartbreaking trial-and-error with fencing. Haspel learned to trust ice, love fishing, and embrace the joys of “fishing it forward.” The couple taught themselves to catch lobster, grow mushrooms with old logs, make their own sea-salt, and to forage in nearby areas with high-level awareness of what was not safely edible. They bought some turkeys and began hunting venison. And then they built their own outdoor oven because “There is... a deep-seated satisfaction in taking food we harvested, cooking it in an oven we built, and feeding it to people we love.” You can absolutely think of “To Boldly Grow” as a book filled with adventure. Undertaking new endeavors, after all, is not always for the faint of heart — even when those endeavors are as quiet as digging and fishing. THE BOOKWORM SEZ
Consider it, too, as lighthearted reading: author Haspel has a great sense of humor mixed with her inner IndianaJones-in-the-garden; and in that, there’s a lot of good-natured self-ribbing and an appealing open-mindedness for trying new things. But that’s not all. There’s seriousness in this book, and a number of pages full of helpful advice. For total novices who are unsure about raising their own vittles, or for readers who never thought they could grocery shop a few feet from their back deck, that’s very tantalizing information. Whether your tomatoes are starting to bloom, or there are seedlings waiting patiently inside, this is a fun way to pass the time before harvesting it all. Find “To Boldly Grow” and put something different on your plate. The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. Terri has been reading since she was 3 years old and never goes anywhere without a book. She lives in Wisconsin with three dogs and 10,000 books. v
Bolks left established church, moved to Orange City FARMHOUSE KITCHEN, from pg. 6
with everyone else, suffered when the locusts came in 1873. The insects devoured almost every green The Bolks family always seemed to be on the and growing plant — whether it be in the field, garmove. In 1865, they received a call to the Reformed den or pasture. Harvest was minimal that fall. In Church in Zeeland, Michigan. After six years of ser- spring, when the seed was sown, hopes for a better vice there, he received a call to the new colony that year were soon shattered when the locusts returned. had been formed so far away in Iowa. This would be Extreme deprivation despair set in as all their their last move, until God called them to their eterhard work and dreams were gone. Some did leave … nal home. others stayed. Dominee and Geertje did their best to Orange City was a new settlement born in 1870. A minister to their flock. Many think this new settleReformed Church had been formally organized on ment would have failed if it wasn’t for the efforts of May 6, 1871. On Aug. 21 of that year, the newly “Father Bolks” and Henry Hospers, the colony’s formed congregation extended a call to Bolks. The leader. church history records indicate they didn’t really Bolks worked tirelessly to encourage during those think he would accept the offer. After all, his church in desperate days, with his steadfast faith he reminded Zeeland was one of the largest churches in Michigan. his flock to look to God. Wherever he was needed, he All Orange City had was a small schoolhouse building either walked or rode his horse. During all his years to worship in — and not even a parsonage. of ministry, he never took a vacation. He knew every But Bolks did accept, and in the spring of 1872 he member of his churches and was well-known in and his family departed for northwest Iowa to the nearby settlements such as Alton, Maurice, small town on the prairie. Pioneering was hard Middleburg, Newkirk and Sioux Center. work. It was no easy task for Dominee Bolks and I wish I knew what words he used to encourage. his wife Geertje — who were both nearly 58 years So far I haven’t found anything written other than old — to begin all over again. he preached with great zeal, pounding the pulpit No one could have predicted the hardships these often and hard. When this was brought to his attenearly pioneers would face. The Bolks family, along
tion, he replied that unless he did so he could not preach. Early in 1878, Dominee Bolks became ill with a lung infection which developed into asthma. By August his health hadn’t returned, so at 64 years old, he resigned as pastor. His faithful helper and counsellor, Geertje passed away on Sept. 10, 1888. She was 74 years old. Seine Bolks lived to be 80 — dying on June 20, 1894. They are both buried in the West Lawn Cemetery in Orange City, Iowa. The picture of Bolks I am most familiar with shows a slender man with a white beard and piercing eyes. I can imagine hearing his commanding, pleading voice saying, “He that believeth in the Son, hath everlasting life, and he that obeyeth not the Son, shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John 3:36 (The majority of this information comes from the paper “Crossing The River With Seine Bolks written by Jan Jongsma ) Renae B. Vander Schaaf is an independent writer, author and speaker. Please contact her at 605-5300017 or agripen@live.com. v
