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Arlington, Georgia: My Roots

I recently traveled down to South Georgia to a town by the name of Arlington. Although I was raised in Atlanta, my dad’s side of the family comes from a farm in Arlington. I’ve posted about Arlington before (It was actually my very first post), but what’s amazing is– I have a totally different experience every time I visit. Especially now that I’m an adult. The days of making mud pies and running in the fields are long gone. Now, I’m discovering more and more about where I come from. My roots run deep in that Georgia red dirt.

We went down to celebrate the 87th birthday of my grandaddy. We get there and where is he at? Taking peanuts to the mill. At 87! On his birthday! Talk about NO days off. Can’t lie it motivated and inspired me bit. I think us young folks underestimate what hard work really is. Yeah, yeah, yeah we “deserve” the world for whatever entitled reason we’ve convinced oursleves, but in actuality we don’t “deserve” shit. The world doesn’t owe us anything. We gotta WORK!

Every spring my grandfather and uncle plant seeds in hopes of yielding a good harvest in the fall. They can do everything right but if it doesn’t rain it doesn’t matter. You have to have faith that it’s going to rain. You have to believe that if you do your part God will in turn do his. The “need” for rain— is our need for faith. In order to get to where you want to go or achieve extraordinary things you have to step out on faith and work towards it. Yes, there are years where it doesn’t rain and the crops are no good and it’s nothing you can really do. But there are also years where it rains and rains and the crops yield the best quality to date reaping high returns. The lesson is to never waver in your faith. It’s not always going to be a cake walk but when God wants to shower you with many blessings, he will, in hopes that you will remember in times that “feel” like a drought– but are really a test of your will & sacrifice.

Not sure if many of you know about the process of farming as it’s not the most attractive career for millenials. lol. But like everything else it’s a business with a heavy reliance on faith. So here is the process of farming in a nutshell (It’s definitely a lot more to it than what’s described):

1. Crop Selection- Comparitive pricing of different crops, market demand and sale of potential of the crop, budget required for the cultivation of each crop, feasibility of the crop considering climate and quality of land

2. Land Preparation- Layout and design of the field with respect to crop for efficient ittigation, latest techniques for leveling the foelds and their cost

3. Seed Selection- Price and quantity needed per acre, average yield and sprout to sown ratio, suitability to particular area and climate, water requirement

4. Seed Sowing- Appropriate time to sow the seed, optimal weather conditions at sowing time, seed sowing depth

5. Irrigation(if available otherwise rain)- Critical time for irrigation, amount of water to be given to the plants, frequency of irrigation

6. Crop Growth- assessment of growth to determine rate, condition, need for fertilization, weeding and plowing.

7. Harvesting- proper time and method for harvesting, comparative market rates, proper crop storage.

One of the most powerful experiences of this particular visit was visiting my great great grandmothers grave and finding out that we have the SAME birthday! I’m pretty sure my dad knew this all my life but kept it from me so I could “figure” it out on my own.

Lucy Blocker was born October 1, 1864. 123 years before me. We both recently celebrated a birthday a few weeks ago. She’s buried beside my great great grandfather and their children are buried surrounding them. The crazy part was her tombstone didn’t have a death date. . .could she be living on through me? I surely hope so. I can only dream of having her strength. Owning & working on your own land back in the 1800’s in the deep south. That’s some next level ish. I’m grateful to come from someone of that stature and even more blessed that I can trace my lineage back and see it with my own eyes. Y’all know Amurica and her history of erasing black folks history. But that’s neither here nor there.