Author: Rory Groves
Located in: Minnesota
Submitted: February 01, 2021
Tell us a little about yourself. My wife and I have been married 15 years and we have 5 children. Several years ago we moved to a small farm in southern Minnesota to try our hands at farming, raising animals, and rediscovering the skills our great-grandparents knew and practiced. Living close to the land has had a major impact on the way we think about family, work, and faith over the years. We enjoy sharing what we are learning through various workshops and events on our farm throughout the year.
What was your motivation behind this project? I'm a computer programmer by training, which means everything I create goes obsolete in a couple of years. On our farm I witness real things, tangible things, happening all around me: lambs being born, seeds sprouting, sap dripping from trees which we boil down into maple syrup, harvests from our garden lasting through the winter. I began to question if maybe the land and professions connected to it held more promise in the long run than cubicles and keyboards
What do you hope folks will gain from this project? This book started as a research project for our own family, but I realized it might benefit other families who are looking for another way forward. Family-centered trades are not only the most durable throughout history; they are also the ideal context by which parents can pass their values, faith, and culture on to the next generation. My hope is that this book inspires readers in some way to begin building a lasting inheritance for their families.
How were you personally impacted by working on this project? Researching and writing this book has changed our lives. One of the most surprising discoveries was how modern, industrial economies negatively impacted family relationships. With the Industrial Revolution, efficiency became our highest virtue, and generational stability collapsed. The factory replaced the family as the primary means of sustenance. As a result, opportunities for apprenticeship, mentorship, and cross-generational continuity of faith and culture disappeared. But we can recover what was lost if we prioritize family and community ahead of modest gains in efficiency, if we reclaim time together rather than paychecks apart.
Who are your influences, sources of inspiration or favorite authors / artists? C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, Allan C. Carlson, Kevin Swanson, Rod Dreher, Wendell Berry, C.R. Wiley
Anything else you'd like readers / listeners to know: A free sample chapter is available on our website. We also publish a free quarterly newsletter about homesteading, faith, and all that we are learning about starting a new family economy.
