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A new daughter-in-law asked, “How long do you have to be married before you get to be family?” This powerful question is part of Jolene Brown’s book “Sometimes You Need More Than a 2 x 4! How-to tips to successfully grow a family business.”
When we think of in-laws, we often think of daughters-in-law, mothers-in-law and fathers-in-law, but in-laws also include the sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law who may be involved in the farm with you or are impacting you from afar.
Summer is wedding time, and I wonder who is a new member of your family farm this year? My new book, “Farming’s In-Law Factor,” co-authored with Dr. Megan McKenzie, has some tools to help you have more harmony and less conflict on your farm.
A new daughter-in-law asked, “How long do you have to be married before you get to be family?” This powerful question is part of Jolene Brown’s book Sometimes You Need More Than a 2 x 4! How-to tips to successfully grow a family business.
I had the privilege of working with a well-adjusted farm family who sought my facilitation skills as an outsider to help them get more clarity about the farm’s successor and everyone’s expectations for the future vision of the farm.
April signifies that a new busy season is approaching. Regardless of how intense the work gets on your dairy farm, keep these words of encouragement fueling your actions.
Doug Stroh, who now works at MNP, created a list of 10 ways you can encourage the heart of your farm. Stroh has granted me permission to share this list because it has stood the test of time.
“Hey, watch out, there’s a rock the size of a loaf of bread about to go through the header!” I yell to my new hubby in the cab of our combine as we harvest in 1981.
“Don’t worry, I saw it, and there will be more,” he confides to me. As a Red River valley farm girl transported by marriage to the Waskada clay loam of southwestern Manitoba, I have developed the habit of picking stones or rocks on my field walks as I deliver meals, fuel or help out with the harvest.
The calendar may say that it’s a new year, but my new year was a few months ago, in September. I always feel that “going back to school time” is really the start of my new learning season.
But alas, you have bright shiny new calendars on your office, shop and kitchen walls. Hopefully, you still have your 2013 diary, journal or calendar nearby to take some time for reflection.
January is a great time to snuggle with a cup of tea and a great book. It is also a time to reflect on the lessons of last year, and for me, that lesson a few years ago was learning to walk alongside friends who have become young widows.
