Kristin Kimball shares the week’s news from Essex Farm in Essex, NY:

“Pressure, release. This is one of the main principles of horse training. Apply increasing pressure until you get the behavior you want, then release. The pressure asks the horse for a different behavior, and the release tells him he got it right. Pressure can come in many forms: voice, touch, tension on the lines, or even energy directed at a place on the horse’s body. But the pressure, release thing has gotten generalized around here from a horse training tool to a principle of human behavior management. It is true that Nathan used pressure, release to win Racey’s heart when they were both farming here; Mark and I have employed pressure, release parenting and marriage strategies.

This time of year I fear the farm has been observing all of this and is turning our strategy back on us. It is applying awfully firm pressure on the whole crew, in the form of fast grass, fast weeds, a million urgent needs. Our reaction is to work faster, longer, harder. Is that the behavior you wanted, farm? I think we are all good and tired now, and ready for a little release.

Have I mentioned lately that I’ve become friends with my pressure cooker? I don’t know what took me so long. The pressure cooker lives at the intersection of delicious and efficient, which is exactly where we need to be during the busy season…” Continue reading this Essex Farm Note.

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