From Sorrow to Sunsets

Flowers are magic. They can be a powerful tool of expression. For Sasha Truett, they much more. They saved her.
Sasha grew up a country girl with her roots running deep in and around Howell County.  She started waiting tables at the young age of 15. Her career in service advanced quickly, but by the time she was 18 she felt a longing for something else.  She left Missouri for a while to travel to other states only to return to her homeland in the Ozarks.
Just a couple of months after being back, Sasha lost her dad to suicide.  She needed a creative outlet to help cope with the loss and mild state of depression that she couldn't shake.
"My Dad was the kindest man I know, I want to be more like him," said Sasha who has settled in Pomona along with her husband and five sons. 
Sasha and Zachary didn't really have a background in farming, but they shared a dream and just went for it.
"I always knew I wanted to be a farmer. I just didn't know what kind," Sasha noted.  But after much research, reading, and praying flowers came to mind. Flowers have always meant something special for Sasha, who credits her great grandparents for her time on their farm. 
"Grandma would always have a vase of flowers on the table, and I want that memory for my boys and others,” said Sasha.
For this petite young lady, the work wasn't about growing flowers but growing herself. By mid-spring, the fields had 7-10,000 seeds and countless bulbs planted. Sasha never intended to compete with the florists in town, so they came up with a mobile flower stand that sits down the road from their farm and operates on the honor system.
When asked how that went over, she replied was "Swell” with a big smile. Since Sasha also homeschools their boys, she uses the flower fields as a classroom in nature and encourages them to learn about the life cycles of the soil, the bugs, and how plants grow to produce. 
Dreams don't come true without some hardships, and Sasha's first summer season will always be a big test of her faith. The record making drought kept her in the fields for four-to-five hours a day watering, Weevils destroyed thousands of sunflowers that were planned for fall arrangements. Pests were another issue that kept her in the fields, hand washing buds with soapy water and praying her efforts would matter. But Sasha had a natural connection to the flowers and couldn't let stress or worry take over. She was invested and was happiest in the fields. Not everyone gets to live a life with so much beauty to share. 
The Truetts’ first season has been amazing, every seed sown had a purpose. Every seed delivered.
The last flowers have been picked and offered for the taking, and the fields will get tilled under and rest bare for a few months but for Sasha, the work has only begun.  Next year will be bigger and better. The mobile flower stand hopes to branch out next year.
Sasha is living her dream of growing flowers so others can share in the beauty that makes her happy. She takes that to heart, and she knows her dad would approve.  She only wants to provide affordable flowers for any occasion or better yet: just because.
At the end of the day when the work is done, the family loads up the farm truck to chase sunsets near and far. It's their way of reflecting on the life they love, every blooming minute.  
 
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Howell County News

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