(Ryan) I always loved being a farmer, and I knew it was gonna be one or the other - like a
career with cars and automotive, or farming. And then I got more involved in
farming than I ever thought I would, and started getting more enjoyment out of it.
Just being able to smell the turned soil - fresh turned soil. Every year it's the same,
the same smell that just reminds you... every year.
(Kathy) There was a point in time where Ryan had to decide, you know. His dad sat him down and said, "Are you in or
you out?" That was probably the moment when you decided you were in, and if
you're gonna be in, you had to be all in! (Ryan) I've lived out on this farm my whole
life. Currently on the farm is myself, my wife, my three kids, and my mother in the
the other house on the farm. It's busy. (Kathy) And then as they progress, certain
parcels of land nearby that we rented were up for sale. You have to be all in,
and jump in, and go to the bank, and get the loan. And we did that and then
there was - two years ago - the original homestead was up for sale, so we bought
that, too. And that has a house and more land on it. (Ryan) And it's a good feeling when
something like that comes full-circle - from four generations back to the first!
And, we're able to look after it and bring it into our own way of doing
things again. It feels pretty good. Well being a farmer to me means having
the ability to put a plan together dealing with things that are so far
beyond our control... with weather, market risk... all the other associated risks with
it, and being able to come up with a perception of feeling successful at the
end of the day. Well you know there's a significant
number of events that kind of keep us in touch with people when we're farmers and
you know one thing that we're always at the mercy of - number one is the weather...
and the drought of '02 when we didn't harvest a kernel of grain. you know I
mean it was so disheartening so humbling, too, to just let you realize that you
don't - no matter what work you do - you're not always going to get rewarded. So you
know with environmental nature there's also nature to health, too. And, when dad became
sick, we always thought it would be someone else. You know, you never thought -
because - you know, your leader... your idol... your icon... is your rock, and when he gets
sick it's really unexpected. And that really turned us to focusing on things that
need to be done, and looking after certain aspects of the operation where we knew
we wouldn't have that hand anymore. We talked - and we always did - we always did
talk, and we had to. (Kathy) And we eat at the supper table. Every - EVERY - supper is right
here at the table with the kids. You know as long as you're home! and
that's when you get your conversations. That's when you review the day. That's
when you talk about what's happening tomorrow. That's where everybody gets
their game. (Ryan) That's right. I mean, it helps to stay connected, you know. I have
three teenage daughters and I take every minute I can to stay connected with them.
It's good. You never know what direction the kids are going to get
involved in. They're just at that age now where they're showing interest in who
they're going to be as a person, and where they want to be. And, we want to make the
farm an environment that they always want to come back to. So, when they're
helping out here, we make sure that they're rewarded accordingly, and
they don't just want to leave and do things. They always know that
they can always come back to the farm... because they're the fourth generation, so
that's one thing that we talk about and try to make sure that there's something
here for everybody. And if they want the opportunity, then we'll do the best that
we can to provide it for them and be there. (Kathy) Sometimes we don't know why we
continue to do it. But, I think it is a lifestyle that's the reason that keeps you
going. You're at the mercy of the weather, and you're at the mercy of everything
else, and you need to work and work and work to get your crop off, and
you don't know what you've made for the rest of the year until this one minute
in the year. And that's kind of a high I think that you get, but there's a lot of
lows. (Ryan) We want to be as open as possible on the grassroots level, and just share
everything that we do. If anybody had a question, we want to encourage them to come over. You know there's a
lot of jobs that you can go to and you can say, "Gee, I feel like I didn't
get anything done today I just worked all day and went backwards." You
know, for most of the operations around here, at the end of the day you can
see what you've put into it and how it's turned out, and what you've accomplished.
Sometimes the work turns out, sometimes it doesn't turn out. But, when it really
does turn out good, there's a big sense of pride there.