Amarillo Sky

This weekend I heard, sadly, reports about California dairies going broke due to exorbitant feed prices and lower milk prices.  The report can be read in its discouraging entirety here: Dairies going broke  If you get a chance, read it.  Have some Kleenex handy.  Here are a few excerpts from the article:

In nearly six decades of running a dairy in central California, Mary Cameron made a name for herself in a male-dominated industry: She led several dairy organizations and was honored as Outstanding Dairy Producer of the Year.

But the 82-year-old Cameron — who still drives a tractor and supervises her Hanford dairy — is on the brink of losing her life's work. She can no longer pay the bills. Her bank has classified her loan as distressed. And she can't afford enough feed for her 900 milking cows and 1,000 heifers.

"I have been in this business for 57 years and I have never been in financial trouble like I am right now," said Cameron, who runs the Atsma-Cameron Dairy with her two sons. "I'm on the verge of bankruptcy. It's horrible and inexcusable."

Our pretty Rosie Girl with a beautiful sunset backdrop

"Recently, I had two men over 60 years old who broke down and sobbed in court," Walter said. "You would be surprised how much these men care about their cows."

Cameron recently saw a bankruptcy lawyer and may have to sell her entire herd and dairy.  "It just makes me sad," Cameron said. "This is a world I love, this is my life."

For Cameron, higher prices would mean she could keep her dairy. When she dies, she wants her children to scatter her ashes in the corrals.  "That's where I belong," she said, "...that's where I've been all my life."

Reading news reports like this always tear me up inside.  As a former rice farmer, I am all too familiar with shrinking margins and their effect upon your profitability, your family's livelihood and ultimately your ability to continue plowing land that your dad and your grandfather before you plowed.  Input prices (fuel, feed, seed, fertilizer, chemicals) and the price you receive for your crop (food, seed, fiber) will always fluctuate, but it is the margin between the two that tells the tale - and how many "lean" years you have in a row.  This is compounded exponentially when you are not in control of your market price and your input prices are skyrocketing.  Times like this will lead to bumper crops - of gray hair.

Jason Aldean sings a country song about this sad and tragic phenomenon that plays out across the rural parts of our land over and over and over again.  It is a plight that goes relatively unnoticed by folks living in urban areas who pick up their milk, meat and grain from the grocery store and give little thought to the hard-working men and women toiling in the heartland to feed our nation.  Here's Mr. Aldean's song below and you can listen to it and watch the video here: Amarillo Sky by Jason Aldean

"Amarillo Sky"

He gets up before the dawn;

Packs a lunch an' a thermos full of coffee.

It's another day in the dusty haze;

Those burnin' rays are wearin' down his body.

The diesels worth the price of gold;

It's the cheapest grain he's ever sold,

But he's still holdin' on.

He just takes the tractor another round,

An' pulls the plow across the ground,

And sends up another prayer.

He says: "Lord, I never complain, I never ask: 'Why?'

"Please don't let my dreams run dry,

"Underneath, underneath this Amarillo Sky."

That hail storm back in '83,

Sure did take a toll on his family.

But he stayed strong and carried on,

Just like his Dad and Granddad did before him.

On his knees every night,

He prays: "Please let my crops and children grow,"

'Cause that's all he's ever known.

He just takes the tractor another round,

An' pulls the plow across the ground,

And sends up another prayer.

He says: "Lord, I never complain, I never ask: 'Why?'

"Please don't let my dreams run dry,

"Underneath, underneath this Amarillo Sky."

Those are some poignant lyrics right there that carry an immeasurable mix of faith, hope, pain, literal blood, sweat and tears and emotion that are enough to make a grown man cry.  Can the next generation of farmers make it?  How many young men these days look forward to getting that navy blue corduroy FFA jacket?  How many young men know by merely looking at a nut whether to use a 9/16 or a 1/2 wrench on it?  Get to know a farmer that is providing your food.  Stop at a farmer's market and buy a full basket and thank them.  Support him or her.  They're busting theirs to feed yours.

Wow.  Sorry, I'll try to lighten it up a bit.  I captured Rosie in the act of a nifty little trick that she can do that I bet you can't.  She can take her tongue and reach it upwards and into her nostril.  That, my friends, is some remarkable dexterity and flexibility right there.  I bet all of you are trying that right now, huh?  I busted you!  

She's got her tongue in her nose as the fading sunlight goes... or Beauty and the Beast?  I couldn't figure out which caption worked better



In summary, there are over 285,000,000 people living in America.  Of that population, less than 1% claim farming as an occupation.  As the U.S. farm population has dwindled, the average age of farmers continues to rise. In fact, about forty percent of the farmers in this country are 55 years old or older (Bureau of Labor Statistics). The graying of the farm population has led to concerns about the long-term health of family farms as an American institution.  Farming Demographics  We need to wake up before it is too late!  Sir Winston Churchill once said, "A country that can't feed itself, can't defend itself."

And here to bid you goodnight is Rosie with glowing eyes in front of a glowing sunset.

Good Night to Moo!



Psalm 113:3

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

³ From the rising of the sun to its setting
The name of the Lord is to be praised.