Lessons of the Farm

Lessons are learned hard and fast on the farm. Some of these lessons are helpful, others I wish never had to learn.

Every kid that grew up on a cattle farm has had a bottle calf. When I was in high school I had one named Bambi. Bambi was born a little different. She had a neurological disorder that affected her ability to stand and walk. Since she couldn’t do either, feeding from her mom was out of the question so, she became my bottle calf. I could yell from yards away that I was coming and she would moo excitingly back. Time went on, and she still couldn’t stand or walk (despite the physical therapy regime I had come up with). The vet took a look at her and called her a “charity case” and that it was time to let her go. I cried and cried and then I cried some more. I tried so hard with this calf, but despite everything I did, I couldn’t save her. I was so hurt. In that moment I hated farming, I hated it so much. That day I could have walked away from the farm and never looked back.

In 2018 I had another bottle calf named Philip. He was a sweet boy who would help me do barn chores and visit with whoever was in the barn that day. At some point we had a cow who had lost her calf, so we decided to pair them up. So Philip had graduated from being a bottle calf to having a mom. He grew big and strong over the summer, and was sold in the fall. He was doing exactly what he was intended to. The day he was shipped, I cried on the way to work. In that moment I hated farming, and I wondered why I was putting myself through the heartbreak.

I love farming, I do. I love our animals. Seeing new calves run and jump around in the spring is one of my favourite parts. They are just so lively and full of energy. I love so many other parts of farming, but the tough days make me question if my love of the good days are enough.

I never truly understood why I was putting myself through the heart ache of having cows, until my mother in law said something that will stick with me forever. “Our livestock live a great happy life on our farm with just one bad day”. That completely change my perspective. I had been focusing on the one bad day instead of the hundreds more that came before it. So on tough days I remember her words, and those words get me through to a better day.