Farming the ways of our forefathers in this busy, fast paced world of corporations, big money and overwhelming taxes, takes a peaceful, patience person to survive and be successful . It takes talents and determination with a love of the freedom to work for yourself and enjoy the pleasures of small successes. My Dad was a farmer in the 1930ties and on in to the 70ties. I didn’t realize how much I had learned from him until we started our own farm.
My father was his own boss and never worked for any other man. His desire to be a man of means, working only for himself, gaining and living in the freedom this country offers was how he lived. He helped many people and worked very hard to provide for our family. Dad spoke freely to us children on how to keep our minds open and encouraged us to ask questions and think before you answer a man. Farming was in his blood and he tried many things to keep diversified. He raised beef, sheep, row cropped tomatoes, strawberries, raised acres of wheat and alfalfa. He cleared fields of grassed and planted orchards of walnuts and prunes. Dad bought land and worked hard to pay the mortgages. He always tried to be successful but had many disappointments. He would always say, “If you don’t take chances you’ll never know if it would have worked, so don’t be afraid to fail.”
To work for yourself can be exhausting. Brian and I have not had a day off for over 5 years. Our gardens have not always been productive, even though we worked hard to plant and weed. The animals take much care and they are not without cost. The buildings always need repair or rebuilt. Brian added on to the barn this year using much of the reclaimed lumber he had stored of several years. We have lost chickens to the wild life here in Kansas and lost our investments many times over.
The joy of living and working for yourself is hard to express. It’s spiritual, and never leaves the heart. Living this way with loving animals and wild creatures, enduring the weather in summer and winter, evokes a pure way of life that echoes from wholesome, honest, loving farmers of the past. My hope and prayers are that more families will find this same desire to live off the land and give their children the same confident, land loving, positive education I received from my father.
