The Love and Passion for My Job at My Grandparent's Fruit Farm

Work is essential to human survival. Work gives us purpose, pride, and a means of living. Since the beginning of time we have had to work to gather food and to build shelters. As our careers advance in diversity and complexity we turn [0 work not only as a means ofjust surviving but also as a means of living. Not needing to focus unceasingly on providing food and shelter, we are able to adopt hobbies. As we write forms at work we write poems at home, as we build houses at work we build swing sets at home, and as we grow food at work we grow flowers at home.

If we are engaged in a job we love, we are not only using it to provide us with a material means of surviving, but also with personal satisfaction in life This personal satisfaction is increasingly hard for me to find, for] feel that I am pulled away from that sort of work which gives me satisfaction in life.

The beginning of the summer heralded the end of sophomore year as it brought feelings of relief that my time chained to indoor schoolwork had ended, Contrarily to what many teenagers expect, I did not anticipate sleeping in late, going out with friends, or playing video games. I looked forward to living on my grandparent’s fruit farm. Located just fifteen minutes from Knoebels Amusement Resort, the farm mainly produces apples as well as peaches, plums, cherries, and pears. My parents were initially skeptical that I could complete the AP Chemistry summer homework that I was assigned, knowing that I would be busy, I was Every day we were out working in the orchards from seven o’clock in the morning until at least five o‘clock in the evening, and we seldom came in from packing, maintenance, and cutting grass until a few hours later.

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On Sunday mornings we went to church, and on Sunday afternoons we went to work. I have not been to Knoebels for nearly five years.

Though gratifying, everyjob on the farm did not embody the popular conception of fun. When picking peaches, the main job at which I was employed, one must ensure that each peach plucked has correct size, color, and firmness. Each variety is slightly different. The harder must be placed on the bottom of the crate in order that the softer on top are not crushed. It is physically challenging as well, The heat is oppressive, and the sun is bright, The straps of the picking harness dig into my back. We don’t come in until we have picked a full load, which takes between two and three hours. It is a challenge, but as we ride the tractor back to the cooler our handiwork can be gazed upon with satisfaction, and our toil seems worth the effort. Then, after a full day of outside work, I must do homework. It’s so much more difficult, I’m tired and sore from picking.

I don’t understand the material. I scrape together what I can and leave the rest for tomorrow. The same thing happens then, too, When doing any sort of physical work, I can look back at what I accomplished. There is one tangible crate of peaches. There is one concrete patch of mown grass, There is one palpable stack of split wood. If I am not completing thejob quickly enough, I simply grit my teeth and push harder. Not so with homework. I can have all the drive and time I need, but if I do not understand my work, I get nowhere. Even ifI do understand what I need to do, it seems to be all in vain. I stay up until midnight to finish an essay, or I study for days before a test. I worry, I forget, I push myself. All I get is a little number on a paper. All that effort for a number.

I understand that I am learning, that I am developing myself, but I do that on the farm too! Trapped indoors by schoolwork, I see life through a haze, and feel both physically and mentally unhealthy. Working outside, I feel alive, sensate, in tune with my body and the environment and God. Though I have always harbored these feelings about school, they usually wear off after the first month. This year, because of the farm, they have not. I feel that fruit farming is my life purpose, my vocation, and I believe that school is separating me from it. It is not that I dislike school, I simply wish to be somewhere else that I will work with thorough enjoyment, develop myself in all areas important to me, and have a real purpose in life.