BLOGS

The sun is shining, the birds are chirping and the world is green again. Springtime is the perfect time to throw those barn doors open – but not just to make milking more pleasant.

While attending a presentation analyzing society’s changing perception of agriculture, I heard a producer ask, “What are ways to engage the public?”

With June Dairy Month just around the corner, now is the time to focus on some promotional efforts. Don’t just leave this task up to the Dairy Farmers of Canada and provincial milk organizations – their message, while very important, can only go so far.

Unknown to most of the world, Israeli dairy farmers have developed one of the most advanced dairy industries in existence. This small country with a turbulent political history, scarce resources and one of the worst climates in which to milk cows has pioneered impressive innovations in the field.

Early Jewish settlers from Eastern Europe created the Israeli Friesian breed after generations of hybrid planning, leading to a cow with the highest milk yield and solids percentage in the world, as well as a remarkable resistance to heat.

As the plastic Easter eggs, the cellophane grass, the Easter baskets and bunnies start to fill the shelves, I see the commercial wheels begin to turn and the world’s thoughts turn to another day of buying and selling – His sacred day. Santa takes precedence on Christmas, and the Easter Bunny takes center stage on Easter.

I can’t help but wonder what Jesus is thinking. His two special days are spent with the world’s eyes gloating over things that “have no life.” He must have the same feeling He displayed when only one healed leper out of nine returned to give Him thanks.

Most people who know me, know that I really like to plan things. In fact, most days I can get so caught up in what I’m going to do next that I forget what I am doing in the moment.

However, even with all those plans, I find the secret to successful planning is to be able to throw said plan out the window at a moment’s notice.

For instance, I am writing this on a plane to Edmonton, Alberta, from which I’ll be driving down to Red Deer for the Western Canadian Dairy Seminars.

I can’t remember exactly how he had gotten here, which may be a testament to how long he was a common sight on the bank near the barn. Since both my mother and aunt taught life sciences at local schools I can only assume that his origin is from a classroom egg incubation experiment.

If so, I’m sure that Larry and his girl, Sally, were brought to the farm because they had nowhere else to go, under the assumption that they would be in the belly of a coon within days.