Brittany Greeson

Quietly sitting in the early morning light, Ella Lemley-Fry works on an assignment for her college credit class. Her room is decorated with more than a dozen animal posters, and her dog, Spice, lies just under her blue and pink tie-dyed socks.
In a plastic box resting on a tall shelf, a butterfly she took in begins to emerge from its cocoon.
&#8220;This is the 77th this year,&#8221; Ella, 14, says.
Ella defies her generation. She has no cell phone. Instead, she has a lifelong connection to the land and the wildlife surrounding it. At the family&#8217;s home a few miles from downtown Frankfort, several acres appear dotted with small rows of greens, corn, peppers, tomatoes, okra and passion fruit. Large solar panels in the backyard power a home. With no hot running water and no television.
Ella&#8217;s mom, Connie Lemley, says comfort is not a family priority.
Instead, the family focus on teamwork to maintain the farm and to nurture awareness of its place in the world. Connie says Ella has an appreciation of other cultures and recognizes that she can dispense with some so-called benefits of life in the modern world.
Ella is home-schooled, and her mother believes the experience provides opportunities for Ella to develop wide interests, which run from soccer to creating her own Halloween costume.
She takes college courses at historically black Kentucky State University, a decision encouraged by her parents, who think that everyone benefits from varied experiences and contacts.
Ella hopes to one day become a marine biologist.

Ella enchanted