Finding relevance in a modern world

It’s 3:05 a.m. here and I’m somehow pulled from my sleep with a nagging question. In today’s society, is a small farm relevant? Let that question sink in for a moment before you answer it. Now, I’ll explain my thoughts. First, I think we have to ask ourselves some hard questions. What do we value? What do we hold most dear? What do we spend our hard-earned money on? Answer these for yourself, and those closest to you. I’m sure you, like myself, can quickly fill in those blanks. But when we change our point of view to encompass our modern society as a whole, do the answers change?

By now you’re asking yourself, “Is this a psychological exam?” No, though I do think those questions help get us to an answer. Haven’t we all heard that once upon a time small farms were everywhere? Then, with post-WWII mechanization/industrialization, Americans shifted away from our farms as a culture. We glamorize the thoughts of that era. If it was so wonderful, why did the children stray from the farm? Why leave the self-reliance and trade it in for generations of prepackaged “meals”? I know you just said, “It was just more convenient”. I think that’s the easy answer and it just doesn’t feel right to me. Disclaimer alert – I’ve been a full-fledged contributor to the “prepackaged meal club”.

I believe, in a great many ways, life is cyclic. You might even say, “seasonal”. Do you feel like a large segment of the generations before us traded their lifestyle, health, and a certain special connection to the world around us for mere convenience? If so, can we ever recover (as a society) an appreciation for the love shown from one to another from something as simple as a meal? Have we continued on a path, or pushed back against the mistakes of previous generations? Are we part of a solution, a problem, or, as time passed, have the two found a way to connect in the middle? You’re an independent thinker. What are your thoughts thus far? Please pause and reflect. Yes, Farmer Jones is full of questions this morning. It’s gotta be the coffee.

Here’s the Five Sons Farmer answer? Are we relevant? Yes, small farms are relevant. Small business is relevant. Men and women alike are still in our culture pushing back against a world that tells us to take the easy road. You and I collectively raise a middle finger to that world and the media that want us to simply float along with the current. Why? Because, in our own way, we’re all achievers. You’re part of a movement. A movement that says, “We’re Americans, and we can accomplish anything we so choose.” We can love who we want, and express that as we so choose. We can find value in being either the bread maker or the breadwinner. We can and do take time to show support where it counts. You purposely “inconvenience” yourself because of what you value.

Your small, daily actions make the world a better place. The best part? You’re not alone. I’ve seen it firsthand. Local food movements transcend differences that modern media would use to push us apart. Things like politics, religion, race, culture, or creed. Food is that common thread binding us all. At our fingertips (the internet) is the capability to search out any food you want and to support people you know. In fact, my farm only exists because you exist. It’s because of who you are as a person. That makes you the hero of today’s story. I believe here is where I’ll finish with a big, heartfelt, “Thank you.”

We’ll see you again soon where, as always, it’s Farming. Done Right.

Nick