All This And Cantaloupes Too

By Beth Yarbrough

The house was enough on its own, but all this and fresh cantaloupe too? I couldn't believe my good fortune.

Very often when an old house finds me (as opposed to one that I went in search of), I immediately begin trying to find a good place to pull off the road and get a picture. Seldom do I just pull in the driveway and hop out of the car, prancing across the front lawn without asking. That's a very good way to get shot, or bitten by a dog, or arrested.

In the case of Meadow Lou Farm one summer morning a few years ago, however, the big sign at the end of their drive actually gave me permission, not only inviting me to drive in, but informing me that while I was there, I might as well check out their sweet corn, watermelons, and other fresh fruits and vegetables - grown right there on the farm. They had me at sweet corn. Actually, they had me at Welcome. Well okay, the house had me before I even saw the sign.

The long drive led me past the house to a farm store in back. When I walked in, the scent of cantaloupe was like perfume. There were six of them, neatly stacked in a bin, just picked that morning. As the farmer's wife rang me up, I asked about her house.

"Well," she said, "it has been in my husband's family for about 113 years. I think it was built sometime right after the Civil War." When I asked if it would be okay to walk around front and take a couple of pictures on my way out, she said, "Sure. We cut the grass yesterday, though, and I don't know - there may still be grass clippings on the front steps, but you're welcome to go take a picture."

And that's what I did. With a house like this, who cares about grass clippings?

You can follow along with these wonderful people on Facebook by searching Meadow Lou Farm. Her photos of the daily offerings from their garden are lush and gorgeous.

Photo by Beth Yarbrough.