January 26, 2018
By Laura Bardot
February is known for being the month of love. Whether that love is for a significant other, children, friends family or all of those categories, people in the agriculture industry also have a different kind of love — a love that is purely cultivated from their livelihood.
Farmers and ranchers tend to animals and crops every day throughout the year, over holidays, birthdays and anniversaries. This passion for caring for the land and livestock is a whole different kind of love than non-ag people know. This kind of affection for animals and crops differs from the love between people, because this love drives the food, fuel and fiber industry for the world.
I first saw this kind of love when I was 6 years old. On a cold winter night, a heifer calved early, so we had her and her calf in the barn close to our house. The curious calf somehow escaped the pen, and she was hit by a car on the road during the middle of the night. Awakened by the disturbance, my parents crafted a small pen and attached it to our garage so we could care for the calf.
I saw the look in my dad’s eyes as he tended to the young calf. The look was a mix of emotions, including being scared, tenderness and hope. He hoped the calf would recover and she could be a productive animal; he also hoped his three girls would not become too attached to the cute baby. But the love I saw when we cared for the calf was unlike any love I have seen between humans.
Many might question why farmers and ranchers have so much love and care for livestock and crops. To put it simply — it is because this is the way of life for them. Their household depends on the weather, the prices of the markets and the demand for the products. This isn’t the normal 9-to-5 job; if farmers and rancher don’t love, or more or less enjoy, what they do, there would not be any person producing our food.
For many, this love is instilled at a young age, because of their upbringing on a farming operation. I can easily say I have witnessed this love and compassion, just as I have given it, too. From caring every day for my 4-H and FFA livestock to choosing to stay involved in the agriculture industry. From growing up on a farm, I have found that the time it takes to feed animals before you are fed, to break water in the dead of winter, to make sure all the pullets are warm — these actions take heart. Farmers and ranchers, as stubborn as crops and livestock can be, love their line of work.
In today’s modern world of social media, many misconceptions about the agriculture industry are thrown into news feeds and groups. Some of the misconceptions include how farmers and ranchers are evil people who seek to hurt animals. I can tell you, they are the exact opposite. I have witnessed several birthdays and holidays missed because the land and livestock needed tending to. It is the love and passion that drives farmers and ranchers. I encourage everyone reading this to send a valentine card to your local farmer. Show him or her some love this Valentine’s Day.
Bardot is a University of Missouri science and agricultural journalism student. Email her at [email protected].
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