L is for Love

Here's my love story...

I grew up on a chicken and dairy farm with my parents and brother and sister. As a teen I remember saying, “I’ll never marry a farmer. Farmers work long hours, and rarely get a day off.” Well, as the saying goes, “never say never.” Farmer John and I were married 35 years ago. Soon after, John and I were blessed with Sara and Michael, undoubtedly the best kids ever.

I think it was John’s dedication and commitment to farming that brought us together. Yes, we do work long hours and rarely get a day off, but that’s o.k. with us. We love the life we have chosen.  I love that we spend much of our day together, as a family, caring for our cows and growing their food. I love watching John’s excitement grow as we near spring planting season, and I love seeing the satisfaction that harvest brings. I love that we frequently get to experience the miraculous birth of a calf.

Like every career choice, farming also has it’s hard times too. We have gone through many summer months when we wonder if the weather will cooperate so we can grow enough crops to feed our livestock. We get concerned when more and more of the land we rent cannot be farmed because it is sold to a housing developer. We shed tears when the cow we just helped through birthing a calf passes away. That’s when we have family to lean on- to pray with, talk with, and plan our next step with. 

There is another familiar saying, “If you love your job, you will never work a day of your life.” I believe this is Farmer John’s motto. He loves what he does each day, and although he is one of the hardest working men I know, I can bet he will never call his job work. It’s this attitude and optimism that makes Farmer John and our family so content to do what we do, each and every day.

I’m so thankful my foolish teenage thought of never marrying a farmer was just that…a foolish thought.