Rob and I really do live our lives with the mindset that we will simply figure things out. Which often means we learn things the absolute hardest way possible.
We spent the winter getting ready for our first season as coffee shop and farmhouse store owners. Okay, if I'm being honest, I did a great deal of the finishing work and designed everything, but I left the actual carpentry to Rob.
We started with my office, which had been his office and was now getting a makeover. We also finally figured out how to use the seemingly wasted space under the stairs to our bedroom. Win!
The cracked, uneven concrete floor in the milk shed turned coffee shop and farmhouse store? Well, I confirmed that if you distract the eye enough, you can get away with almost anything.
We learned about signs. The need to have them, where to put them, what they should potentially say, and how to get them to stay in place. Signs. Who knew?
I learned that my art is, in fact, actual art. My baked goods are competent, although I'm still a long way from patisserie level. Rob learned how to make TEA! He also mastered the fancy, push-one-button espresso machine and even learned to use a manual one. We figured out which non-dairy products actually froth and which don't. We learned what cold brew truly is and just how delicious it can be.
We also learned that "open" and "closed" can mean just about anything to anyone. Some people left. Some people stayed. And many people were incredibly happy to find REAL COFFEE, freshly brewed in our little coffee desert.
I learned there is a lot of curiosity about shamanism. Potentially more than there is about psychotherapy. (I get it, really.)
We learned that we have a lot of neighbors! And that this land, really and truly, calls people to it.
To everyone who found us, thank you. To everyone who walked the land, spent some time here, or simply stopped long enough to see its beauty, thank you.
The coffee shop season is over for now, but the Farmhouse Store isn't disappearing for the winter. Products can still be purchased online, or you can arrange to stop by in person. Just let us know you'd like to come by. There will be new products as we move further into fall and winter, including things made, in part or in whole, from what we've grown right here on the land.
The coffee shop will return in the spring. The actual opening date is still to be determined because, well, this is Maine, and sometimes spring takes a while to show up.
The summer was full. There were surprises. There were gifts. There were lessons. There were magical days. There were rainy days.
And there were people who came, stayed awhile, drank coffee, explored, asked questions, and helped make this first season what it was.
We'll be offering workshops throughout the winter, too, so keep an eye out for what's coming.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you. This was certainly a summer to remember, and you all helped make it possible.
Warmly,
Crystal & Rob