I’ll be honest, when I left home a little over two weeks ago I didn’t know what I thought about spending three weeks in Iowa learning about farming and agriculture. I grew up around livestock, so I have constantly heard about market prices, agricultural regulations, farm land, and challenges my parents face everyday dealing with their cattle businesses for as long as I can remember. Truthfully, I got tired of hearing all about cattle and the problems that came along with the business. By the time I hit 7th grade, I wished I lived in town and my parents had a normal nine to five job. I should have never complained considering cattle paid for me to attend private schools all my life and for my horse show life that entailed traveling over the United States.

As I started college, I had learned to accept that my parents were cattle brokers and I was thankful it paid for my college education, but I didn’t want anything to do with it. Since I was officially a young adult, my parents thought I was old enough to learn how the cattle business worked. My mom helped me get a beginners farmers loan from the FSA, so I could buy my own cattle, hoping that if I had my own cattle I would have more interest in it. I did start to learn how things the work, but unfortunately it didn’t increase my interest significantly.  I had in my mind that I wanted to be a lawyer, have a office, and live in town, perhaps on the water. In my head, there was no room for cattle in that equation.

Now as I sit in Iowa, after just finishing my sophomore year in college, I finally have realized farming isn’t so bad. Since I have been on this trip I have learned to appreciate the occupation and I realized how lucky I was to grow up understanding it. I am ready to really learn how to work and manage my cattle instead of running from it.  Most people have no idea where their food comes from nor do they understand how conventional farming works. I never realized how much I had picked up from my parents or learned from them over the years. I also worked so hard to block out what they taught me about farming that I had failed to realize how much knowledge I had actually picked up. I am now proud to say I grew up with an agricultural back ground, and I hope that I can make it a part of my future. I don’t want to be a full time cattle broke or farmer, but I would like to have some cows of my own that I keep on the farms that I will get to inherit from my parents. I also realize it may not be so bad to be a cell phone farmer and manage my farms by phone in my law office.

I’m not sure if it was seeing all the family farms here in Iowa and hearing their stories or learning about Dr. HN’s story that really made me realize I shouldn’t be running away from such a special occupation. I feel blessed to understand the business and have an opportunity to contribute something to it, even if it is not my full time job.