Tuesday, March 24, 2015

True Grit, Farm-Chick Style!

The other day my 6 year old grand-angel, Miss N drew a picture that stopped me in my tracks. The drawing was her version of a “how to make a person”.  To me, it was so clear, so true and so applicable.  We all have to start at square one and take it step-by-step to complete the picture.  And it made me think, ( I know a frightening thought which can scare even the bravest of souls! Lol)…. so let me explain what I mean.

A Step by Step on "How to Make a Person
I’m a people watcher and frankly I still get amazed at how tough, funny, and wonderful women are.  Not just because I belong to that bewildering race that completely baffles men, but because we have true grit.  It could be the company I keep too.   I don’t know exactly why, but I’m surrounded by amazing women, not only family but friends and co-workers.  Then my mind drifted off to other farm women I know and I have to say we are a breed in of itself, mostly I think we have to be a little bit crazy ( maybe it’s just me) and of course, I think crazy is one of my better qualities….  But all these farm-women friends all have a true love of the land and all that goes into producing food.  It gets into your blood whether or not you were raised on a farm or married into one, there just seems to be something that defines your heart and soul. 


Anyway I got to thinking about 3 former farm-wife/partners who like me, had their lives completely changed by events that took them from their life on their generational farm and a life they loved and started over in a new direction.  I am in awe of where they are now, as these women picked themselves up, brushed themselves off and created a new life wherein they have accomplished amazing things.    If you have been reading this blog for a while, you know that I love the Ag industry, but it has a way of honing a tough courageous spirit in the women that are part of the farming business.  The tremendous financial burden coupled with wild card factors like weather and market is a breeding ground to develop inner strength I know I didn’t possess it until I married into a farm family.  And like any other lesson in life, it has served me well, just like it has for my other farm-women friends.  For instance, take my friend Lezah who is a force of nature  and who has this natural ability to create or fix anything and by the time she is in her mid-60s will have finished her accounting degree while working full-time; then there is friend Caroline Nielson-Troy, who went from being a former farm-wife/partner to a fundraiser for the College of Ag and now is a newly elected legislator in Idaho; next is Pam Fretwell, another farm-wife partner who after her divorce went onto become a farm broadcaster/journalist  who now is working as a director for a very prestigious Ag publication called Farm Journal.  They are inspiring and self-made legends.  It just shows me that you can accomplish anything and that you need to go step-by-step to make your new dream happen.  With that I want to share that I recently got the chance to write my own Ag column for a small but really wonderful magazine called Home and Harvest.  Of course I’m scared to death and hope that people will like what this goofy brain of mine wants to write, but I’m am also excited beyond words.  So I invite you to check it out as they have both print and an on-line version. 

As always, I'm just a click away, so shoot me an email ( swheatfarmlife@gmail.com )or leave a comment.

All my best, Gayle