I believe farming is something inside of us.
Its a love for all things living and a faith that God will provide what we need.
We love the Good Times – the newborn goats and calves,
the baby chicks and ducks, the high milk tests, the yields that exceed expectations.
Its the Struggles, though, that are what make those good times - Great.
We enjoy the challenge of doing more with less and finding new ways to do old things to make our livestock and our farm better than they were before. We take pride in continuing a tradition that started in our families generations ago.
Farming is truly in the cloth from which we were cut.
If Farming is so hard, why do we choose to Farm?
We farm for our families, for our community, for our land, for all those who need something to eat and drink, and for us. We farm because it’s who we are.
Farming is Nostalgic to people who aren’t Farmers.
Farmers are nostalgic about farming, too.
When we’re looking for the link between food and farm, maybe the Nostalgia is where we connect. Maybe these farm stories are our common bond with those who left their farming roots behind. Just because we’re moving forward doesn’t mean we can’t look back.
Farming is something that truly lives inside you. I believe it’s impossible to explain the depth of farmers’ passion for their work to someone who has not lived it.
Honestly, I’ve tried, but it’s beyond words.
The powerful hold that land and animals have over their caretakers is seen in moments like those simple words spoken between two people who share that passion.
So many Hours.
So much Toil.
So many Resources.
So much Physical Labor.
So many Missed Social Events and Family Trips.
So much Heartache when an Animal Dies or a Crop Fails.
So much Investment for often So Little Gain.
So many "What if"s, "Why not"s, "How come:"s and "If only"s.
So much Uncertainty and very Few Assurances.
So many Variables so Out of our Control.
So How can One possibly Love to Farm?
Because a Farm Gives So Much More than it Takes.
So much Pride in feeding your own family and countless others.
So many Memories doing the hard things together.
So much Joy in what some see as mundane but you see as Miraculous.
So many days spent making a Life, not a Living.
So much Value in what's ultimately priceless.
So many Life Lessons that no book could ever teach.
So much Faith in the Greater Good and our God, who holds it and us all together.
To Love a Farm is not for the Faint of Heart,
though some days it takes all we've got to keep our Hearts Strong, Minds Focused, and our Feet Moving.
It's the Hard Days of Farming that make the Good Days all the more worth it.
To Love a Farm is to push past the fears,
embrace change for the promise change can bring, and learn from the mistakes of yesterday to make tomorrow better.
To Love a Farm is to cherish a life not many get to experience yet so many benefit from.
To Love a Farm is to find where patience and perseverance produce a bounty of hope.
To Love a Farm is one of the greatest privileges and sweetest blessings I've ever known.
The weather and our prices are two of the things we depend on most, and two of the things we have the least control over. The past year has no doubt made us stronger. It has made us appreciate the things that do go right. If farming was easy, it wouldn’t be so rewarding.
“It’s supposed to be hard. If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it. The hard…is what makes it great.” – Tom Hanks as Jimmy Dugan in A League of Their Own
