S
S MALL T OWN B IG
Story and photographs by Sandra Harper
pring is here. It’s Saturday morn-
ing at the farmer’s market in
Marfa. The cheese maker, the
baker, the beekeeper, the egg producer,
the jelly and salsa suppliers, the burrito
and tamale vendors are setting up their
tables. A farmer and backyard garden-
ers arrange their vegetables. A jeweler,
a seamstress, an artist and a medicine
ball maker are working on their dis-
plays. The Shorthorn cheerleaders set
up their fundraising table. Already a
4
Cenizo
number of visitors to the market are
milling about. Farm Stand Marfa,
situated in the center of town alongside
the railroad tracks under the gigantic
ranch shed built by Tim Crowley, is
open for business. The Union Pacific
freight line blows by with a blast of noise
and whistles. Everyone pauses in mid-
sentence. Some folks plug their ears
with their fingers.
Good friends and strangers; toddlers,
tourists, ranchers, artists—all lovers of
Second Quarter 2014
Far West Texas—mingle and browse
or head to their favorite stands. Strollers
wheel through. A posse of bigger chil-
dren tumbles by. These are some of the
best customers. They know the names
of the vegetables and the growers who
grew them. They know they can sample
goat cheese at Malinda’s table and buy
a cup of lemonade from Alicia.
Older folks are a vital part of the mar-
ket. They are both producers and cus-
tomers. They visit the market to social-
ize and celebrate the abundance of the
desert. They teach us and remember for
us. From them we learn the history of
Marfa, its twists and turns. Together we
track the shifting weather and share sto-
ries about the changes in the town.
The market is an expression of the
community—from homespun and
homegrown to Latino culture and con-
temporary art. In this mix of local
made, Marfa
has found a continued on page 26