Wes Hanson and Hardscrabble – How the Farm is

Some care for the land with their hands—planting, tending, and stewarding it through the seasons. Others share their connection through words. For longtime land steward and conservation easement owner Wes Hanson, the two are inseparable.

Across the Inland Northwest, the lands we love are shaped by people who have spent years caring for them—planting, tending, watching the seasons shift, and learning the rhythms of the natural world. Wes is one of those people. His connection to the land runs deep, and it has inspired not only a lifetime of stewardship but also a body of poetry that captures what it means to live closely with a place.

In his collection Hardscrabble: Life on the Land, Wes shares a series of lyrical poems inspired by the landscape he has spent caring for. If you’ve ever worked the soil, walked the same trail through the seasons, or cared deeply about the future of a place, these poems will likely feel close to home.

Below is one of Wes’s poems from Hardscrabble.

How the Farm Is
By Wes Hanson, Author,
Hardscrabble: Life on the Land
 

Let me tell you how the farm is.

The dog shows up,

Shaking off water from the weeds.

She leans against the sliding door.

I finish breakfast.

Swallows glide in and out of sunlight.

My wife’s coffee, boiling in an enameled pan,

Flows over the lip and hisses through the burner.

I call the dog’s name, call again.

Her eyes stare at me through the glass.

I cinch bootlaces and slide suspenders on,

Grab my felt hat.

By now she is frenzied.

Racing down the steps

She scatters juncos.

Morning has begun. 

Did You Know?
When you purchase Wes’ book Hardscrabble: Life on the Land through Cave Moon Press, part of the proceeds go directly to supporting the Inland Northwest Land Conservancy and its work to protect our lands and waters. Thank you, Wes, for your work to conserve what matters most.