I recently read an article written by a woman who was speaking to her future child about agriculture and the advice she would give them. I was inspired to share my own list of things I hope and promise my future children in their agricultural endeavors( no mom, this isn't something you should get excited over just yet). What would you tell your children about your hopes and promises for their future?
1. First of all, I promise to let you play outside and get dirt, mud, etc., all over yourself. I want you to learn that getting your hands dirty shows the hard work you put in to your day and isn't something to freak out over.
2. I promise to teach you not only all the sounds animals make when you're little, but also all the things animals provide us, so you learn to appreciate the livestock we raise and learn compassion for them while also understanding why we need to harvest them.
3. I hope you enjoy having your hair messy and wearing boots and jeans. I hope you feel beautiful without a ton of makeup on. I hope your stubbornness and intelligence and ability to drive a tractor or back a trailer make you feel beautiful.
4. I promise to let you have a dog and a horse, despite your future fathers disagreement for needing any other animals. I know how important their friendship is to young kids and the responsibility it teaches, and I hope you learn those qualities from them as well.
5. I hope you pray to God, about everything. I hope you pray for guidance and for him to lead you to a place in agriculture where you can use your strengths and skills to advocate.
6. I promise to always pray to God for you as well, and to pray to him with you. I hope his path for you follows an agricultural path as well.
But if He leads you down another road, I hope your heart is always back at the farm and takes you back there for every holiday or just when you feel like getting away from life.
7. I promise to put you in 4H, and let you show horses. I hope you join FFA when you get to high school.I promise to be at every fair, every jackpot, every show because you need and deserve my support and I want you to know how proud I am of you.
8. I hope you're proud of yourself even when you lose. I hope that you know where you need to improve and will continue to do things fearlessly while being kind and compassionate towards your competitors. I promise to never make you feel like you can't accomplish something.
9. I hope you go to college. I hope you major in something Ag related. I promise to teach you everything I know, help you open doors into the industry and help you get through the stress college brings.
10. I hope you want to spend your life on a farm, knowing it's not as glamorous as Hollywood, or easy by any means. I hope you're proud of the industry, and love it just as much as I do. I promise that even when you feel discouraged and want to give up and people make you feel like you aren't good enough, if you keep trying, you'll accomplish things you never dreamed of.
11. I hope you Eat, Pray and Farm with all your heart. Truthfully, those three things have made me the woman I am today. The better person I strive to be, and the Woman, or Man, I want you to become.
