Fall is my favorite time of year, and I know many of you feel the same way.

My appreciation for the season has nothing to do with pumpkin spice and more to do with the leaves on the trees changing colors, and dragging sweaters from the back of my closet. Even those things do not top my list. I love fall because it is harvest season.

Missouri farmers have been anxious to fire up their combines and cotton pickers, ready to reap rewards made available by a difficult season. Producers have forgotten about high input costs and out-of-this world fuel costs. Rather, bringing in a crop is the culmination of the decisions farmers made through the growing season.

We tend to take for granted that the average person outside of agriculture does not understand our industry and the volume of decisions that are made to produce a crop each year. No matter if the crop is grain or livestock, the end result doesn’t magically appear.

Share harvest with consumers

This season gives farmers and farm families a chance to show off our industry to the outside world.

The fall colors and beautiful sunsets provide a perfect backdrop for an Instagram post of the combine rolling through the field. Southeast Missouri farmers can use their social channels to show rice, cotton and peanut harvest to an audience who probably has no idea those things are grown in our state.

Advocating for agriculture is a sincere passion of mine and is something I did a lot on social media before becoming Missouri director of agriculture. My opportunity to speak before Congress in Washington, D.C., was a product of telling my family farm story. Don’t overlook the chances to tell your story. Harvest season is a terrific time to put real faces with the hard work of raising food, fuel and fiber.

Harvest brings family to fields

There is an increased sense of family during harvest season. Perhaps the approaching holidays play a factor. To me, the fact that multiple generations are often involved is what makes the season special.

Grandfathers might have turned the farm over to the next generation, but they are back out in the field, hauling grain to town in October. It isn’t unusual on any given evening to see three or more generations in the field.

When our kids were little, they loved going to the field to visit Dad and Grandpa. Like so many farm kids, they were lulled to sleep many times in the tractor or combine cab. We are incredibly proud that both kids are involved in harvest this fall as young adults. They understand the give and the take of this time of year, as well as the pride of a finished job.

Harvest season also means that my favorite holidays are just around the corner.

Fall ushers in celebrations

When I was growing up, our family always went to my grandparents’ home and the family farm for the holidays. Like most of you, those were our favorite days, playing with cousins.

On Thanksgiving, we drew names for the Christmas gift exchange. Oh, the anticipation. Honestly, I don’t know which was more fun — receiving the special gift or watching the excitement from the person whose name I drew after searching to find the perfect gift.

Now, we gather with my brother and sister and their families at my parents’ house. The next generation of cousins plays board games and exchanges names, keeping alive traditions passed down through the years.

As these holidays roll around, Missouri farmers will have their crops in the bin or in markets across the globe to help feed a growing world. They will have a paycheck in the bank and bills paid.

Most importantly, they will have the feeling of a job well done, of taking care of the land that God has provided so that the next generation can make a living doing what they love also. I do love the fall!

Chinn is the director of the Missouri Department of Agriculture and a hog producer from Clarence, Mo.