Moving Forward

By Glenn Brunkow @Brunkow

Yes, there have been harder years than 2020 in the ag community. Years of more extreme drought, heat, rain or pests. I am sure we have seen years with worse markets and more trying times. Although maybe not – bad years and good years are so personal to each of us. If you were touched by COVID-19, 2020 may very well have been your worst year ever, and if that is the case, my heart goes out to you.

My point is, 2020 was not a good year, and I am sure that most of us hope that 2021 will be a much better one. The one thing I do know is those of us in agriculture have learned to deal with adversity and keep moving forward. We know how to absorb the blow of a bad year and pick ourselves up and keep on keeping on. That is what we do, that is who we are, and that is why agriculture is the backbone of the United States.

We will persevere with the faith of a farmer and rancher because that is what we do.

What will 2021 look like? Who knows? I have seen long-range forecasts, but I do not put much faith in them. As far as the pandemic goes, we have no idea. Even the experts are split on what the next 12 months will look like. But I do know this. We will plant the next crop this spring, and we will help new lambs, calves, pigs, goats, chickens and horses come into this world. We will persevere with the faith of a farmer and rancher because that is what we do.

We will go to the field and to the pasture with the same optimism that our parents and grandparents carried with them, even through the toughest of times. I also know Farm Bureau will be right there alongside us in state capitals and in Washington, D.C., coming up from the grassroots and making sure those of us who feed the world are heard.

No, I had no idea what was ahead of us at this time last year, but we made it through. I have no idea what is ahead of us in 2021. We will change and adapt just like we have in previous years and we can all be proud knowing that as part of Farm Bureau, we are leading the way when it comes to ensuring our farms and ranches survive and thrive no matter what the year brings.

Glenn Brunkow is a farmer and Farm Bureau leader in Kansas. This column was originally published as a Kansas Farm Bureau Insights column.