And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. Gen:2.15

 

The idea for Saverine Creek Heirlooms came to me in the autumn of 2003 when I was astonished by the intricate beauty of some of the dried beans my brother had grown on our family centennial farm. The varieties of heirloom beans had intriguing names, like Good Mother Stallard, Jacob’s Cattle, Red Calypso, Tiger Eye and Paint Dry. The seeds were gorgeous; opening each dried pod was like finding a treasure — seeds genetically untouched, passed down from generation to generation. I felt their individual beauty needed to be showcased, and making them into custom designed jewelry seemed to be the perfect avenue to draw attention to these rare “gems”.

 

Each year my eldest brother plants an incredible garden in the rich organic soil, filled with an amazing array of rare and unusual vegetables. Our whole family partakes of the bounty; Mom and Dad, brothers, sister, nieces, nephews, cousins, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We gather together at harvest time, canning and freezing. In the cooler weeks, some of us can be found outdoors, pulling the heirloom dry beans from their bushes or shelling them all by hand in a spot warmed from the sun and out of the wind.

 

Our family farm actually began in the late 1800’s with the immigration of my great-grandfather from Germany. He first came to the United States and lived in Ohio, then moved north to Michigan. Their “new” home, built in 1909, is pictured below. We are a close family, getting together frequently for birthdays, holidays, and other special events. These gatherings are always accompanied by a sumptuous meal, frequently still prepared by my mom.

 

As I look back, growing up on the family farm was such an incredible blessing. We had hours of fun outdoors, swimming in the creek, building “cabins” in the woods, tunnels in the hay mow. The fun was tempered with hard work, especially in the summer months when we hauled hay. Watching my dad work endless hours building up the farm, and my mom cooking, cleaning, baking, and doing the laundry in the early years on her “wringer washer” instilled in us time-honored values. Hard work, integrity, honesty, responsibility and determination were clearly modeled for us. The importance of family remains strong in all of us, a treasure we could never have purchased.

 

When you purchase my natural jewelry creations made from organic heirloom seeds, I hope as you wear it you will think of home and family, of simpler days and nice warm sunshine, of rich brown earth in the spring, of the importance of continuity, and the preservation of a way of life now rare – the family farm.

 

Blessings ~ Debra

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