No, the headline isn’t ironic, facetious, snarky or sarcastic. It’s simply good honest advice gleaned from what I’ve heard and seen for many years.
Time and again, farm family members have told me about a friend, neighbor or relative who was so devoted to farming that he never developed any interests or hobbies outside agriculture. When age or circumstances forced him to quit farming - or at least cut back on the amount of time he spend on it - he struggled to fill his days and find a reason to get up in the morning. “He should’ve gotten a hobby, or something else to do that he enjoyed,” the farm family members say.
The 2016 crop season is on the home stretch in much of the Upper Midwest. Many tasks - hauling grain from on-farm storage to the elevator and learning more about crop protection products and marketing, among others - are on farmers’ to-do list this winter.
But here’s my respectful, earnest suggestion: If you’re farmer without a hobby or outside interest, think hard about getting one. Yeah, I know, you’re really busy. But it would be time well spent.
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