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Missy Greene and Ellie at Yellow Birch Farm

Dear Bread Fans,

I am at Ellie’s, my dear pal, here in Maine to be with her Farms, Food and Photography class at UMaine. Ellie Markovitch and I used to teach writing and photography together when she lived in upstate New York. She moved away 8 years ago, and for the last few years, we’ve been in steady touch, texting each other pictures of what we’re eating or baking, who is at our tables. I send her pictures of the sky, or lately, of my feet, as walking returns to my routines post-surgery.

We took up this visual language when her friend Phyllis died. The two of them texted each evening, sharing what was for dinner. Gently, I asked Ellie if I could start texting at dinner, and our habit began. We trade a lot of words, but our exchange is a clothesline of snapshots, postcards that say wish you were here!

When I arrived, I still had the reflex to send her pictures. I couldn’t get used to being by her side. So here is a small string of pictures of Yellow Birch Farm, an amazing place we visited on Deere Isle, run two artists who farm, Eric Ziner and Missy (Melissa) Greene.

I hope you’re seeing wonderful things, too. And I especially hope that one of those things a story I wrote for Wordloaf about Mavia Bakery, an incredible social enterprise in Beirut. If you didn’t see it yet, please take a look.

Your flour pal, Amy

The yellow birch tree the farm is named for is too big for me to catch in one picture! Some of Eric's sculptures are on the top right, and one of Missy's pieces of pottery is on the bottom.