I get the question all the time from people that do not have farm animals, why do you work so hard? What keeps you motivated to get up at 5 AM in the dark and bitter cold to go do chores? Why do you try to keep up the farm while still maintaining a semblance of a social life, managing our careers and other household activities? This is something that I honestly had to sit and reflect on recently. Why do I do this? I have never questioned my lifestyle or really thought about the reasoning behind my activities. My grandparents had a farm and my parents as well and I always knew that I wanted to keep the tradition going. I did live briefly throughout college and after moving in with my now husband where we did not have farm animals and property and to say I felt a void in my life is an understatement. I would constantly feel cagey and trapped, and look for any reason to be active outside.
As an adult, priorities, responsibilities and life changes and it is always good to sit down and reassess what you want with life. Especially, when it comes to something that I spend at least two hours each day working towards. Each time I have thought about it I have come to the same conclusion. My life working on my farm is an integral part of who I am, it has helped to define me as the person I have become. I continue to learn valuable life lessons from my time spent outside on my farm. I recently read a quote by Zig Ziglar where he suggested spending at least thirty minutes of the beginning of each day sitting quietly and thinking about what you want out of life. I rarely sit for thirty minutes in the morning before heading outside to do chores, but I realized in the calm and peace of my barn I do my best thinking, the quiet munching on hay and ruminating of my goats brings me back to center and I am able to think clearly without all of the other
worldly distractions. Secondarily, I absolutely adore my animals, with my goats being my absolute favorite. Not a day goes by where they do not make me laugh, or provide me with unconditional love and support. The third reason I do this, is because I think it is important. I am utterly committed to providing the best care I can for my animals and it is my way of giving back to the world. These animals have entrusted me with their lives and it is up to me to take care of them in the absolute kindest, most ethical and humane way I can. I believe in agriculture and the importance of feeding the world, but I also believe in making our farm animals stronger and less genetically susceptible to diseases. I work each and every breeding season to make the next generation stronger than the one before it.
There are many more reasons that I chose to make sacrifices in other areas of my life to continue with my love and passion for animals, but these are the main ones. I appreciate everyone around me who supports me in this endeavor that I choose to pursue and I wish you all the best ! Happy Goating!
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