Growing up on a farm is one of the coolest experiences I have ever had and it has taught me a lot over the years. One of my favorite things about being on a farm is being able to see all your hard work in action. Many people don’t understand how much work actually goes into running a farm, but let me tell you… it’s a lot of work.

I believe that living on a farm creates a different work ethic that allows you to step outside of your comfort zone and use a more “hands on” approach of working. When I was little I was a part of the 4H program for my elementary school. This program is where my love of hard work began. I started showing sheep at 8 years old at the local county fair. I had seen some of the older kids in my school take part in 4H and I thought it would be a fun thing for me to do. I got my first set of sheep that school year and I began raising them. This meant that I went out every morning and night to feed them and spend one on one time with them. When showing livestock at the fair you want to have a good bond with your animal so I worked everyday to maintain that connection. 

Fair week was very busy and very tiring. The week includes late nights and early mornings preparing the sheep for show. I would be up early each morning to tend my sheep and get ready for the long day ahead. During fair week this usually included sheering them and bathing them to make sure they looked nice and clean. I would also practice walking them and getting them into the proper stances. Your sheep was graded on a few different categories such as; muscle and fat coverage, how fit that were, and how behaved they were during the show.

This particular fair week was very exciting for me because I had the opportunity to show my sheep with the high school class. I remind you that I was only 8 years old at the time, but I had taken such good care of my sheep that they were big enough to be in a higher class. This is a moment in my life where I could see my hard work paying off.

Because of my past and growing up on a farm it has helped me here at this farm. There are not many things I shy away from and I always enjoy working with the sheep. Here on the farm I love partaking in everyday chores and lambing season. These are some of my favorite things that happen here and I am grateful to be a part of them. I’m thankful for my background and the memories it has brought and the lessons I’ve learned. If you ever get a chance to spend some time on a farm I highly recommend you take that opportunity. It will definitely teach you something about yourself :)

-Emily Frederick