Fly over rows of sunflowers at Cape Cod Organic Farm in Barnstable
Sunflower season in full bloom at Cape Cod Organic Farm in Barnstable
It’s the end of August, and that brings with it three words that can inspire joy or fear: “Back to school.” Henry Ford said, “He who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or 80. He who keeps learning is young.” That might explain why there are many photojournalists who are long old and still young in spirit, but still ply their trade. For a photojournalist, every day can be a school day, especially in the summer. I learned a lot while roaming the Cape from one end to the other this summer.
At the end of June, Korean War veteran Max Sarazin gave me his 74th birthday present in the shadow of the statue dedicated to these soldiers on Veterans Beach in Hyannis.th anniversary of the beginning of that war. Tanya Bassett gave me an introduction to caterpillar identification at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History’s butterfly house at the end of June.
July came with the Barnstable County Fair, and the judges in the arts and crafts section gave me tips on quilting, embroidery, and rug making. On a rainy morning in Sandy Neck with birder Peter Crossen, I learned about shorebird identification while working on a “shorebird blitz” bird count. Surrounded by hand-crafted barrels, barrel maker Tom Kelleher told me the history of barrel making and how it is still used today. Think bourbon aged in charred oak barrels.
There is no better way to escape the summer crowds and traffic than to go to a farm, and I have had lessons from the Cape’s best farmers. Cynthia Sutphin welcomed me to Cape Cod Lavender Farm for many years and gave me enough guidance to make me a successful grower of the plant. Geoff Andrews of Tony Andrews Farm has taught me a lot about strawberries and sweet corn over the years and has something new to share every time I stop at the farm in East Falmouth.
As August draws to a close, the rows of summer blooms at Tim Friary’s Cape Cod Organic Farm in Barnstable are a surefire place to find monarch butterflies, which aren’t camera shy and are happy to pose for portraits. I can always count on him to talk about the deer that have eaten my tomato plants or the pesky earwigs that are feasting on everything I plant. His tips and information have given my garden a real chance at success.
Luckily, my summer school classes didn’t include math, but did include some English lessons as several captions were sent back for revision. A full season of learning thanks to a solid group of teachers.
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