Most of us have been taught not to use the Lord's name in vain. It is a concept  that we are taught as children but sometimes you just can't help yourself. As I patiently waited in line to purchase watermelon , cantaloupe and corn, I overheard a customer simply state "my Lord". She did not mean to utter this phrase but the taste of the freshly cut  and sampled cantaloupe caught her off guard. This is not any cantaloupe. No, this is "nothing but the truth cantaloupe"," the real deal"; pick your superlative. The cantaloupe is just one of the reasons that I was standing in this line on a hot Thursday afternoon. The cantaloupe and watermelon from this farmer taste like they were grown in a field of sugar. This is real cantaloupe-not the kind that you find in decorative fruit arrangements or fruit platters - but fresh, local, Maryland cantaloupe given readily by the vine because it is time.The sun and the earth have done their best and in return a customer simply states"my Lord ". I  usually arrive early to this farmers market , pick out my produce and wait patiently on the seasoned farmer from Maryland  to unload  the rest of his truck.

Each week he slices a watermelon and cantaloupe. Some of the melons have yellow flesh or " yellow meat" as we called them as children and some are orange on the inside. He does not talk much but then he doesn't have too- the melons, corn, blueberries and other produce speak for him. As customers swarm around his stand, he can not unload the corn fast enough. His grandaughter's admonition to " put  more corn out" is calmly met with  the measured response "I'll put it out after I rest".As he stands in the back of his truck  he can clearly see that his work is not in vane.This is what farming is about; watching  eager customers bag your fruits and vegetables as fast as you can unload them. This is what makes the $5000 investment for irrigation and ten hour days worth it all- "my Lord" uttered by a new satisfied customer.