Sitting in a deer blind watching the woods come to life in early morning, hoping the sun arrives soon to warm it up, gives one much time to think and reflect on life – and death. The passing of my brother Bob and subsequent celebration of his life was very much occupying my thoughts. I have never quite understood why, when a well-known actor dies, the media turns them into a saint. After all, what they have really done is pretend to be someone they are not, similar to a con artist, only better. Bob never pretended.
Bob was a farmer all his life and he was the smartest person I ever knew. I admit I never met Eienstein, but doubt it would change my mind. A farmer has to be an agronomist, a chemist, a botanist, a biologist, an entomologist, a plant pathologist, a weatherman, a mechanic, a welder, an engineer, an expert on government regulations, and on and on. You get the point but most importantly, he must be an optimist. He has to have faith that when he puts the seed in the ground it will grow and not be destroyed by disease, drought, flood, wind, hail and most importantly in West Virginia, deer and bear. Bob told me more than once he should just quit farming and turn the farm into a game preserve, but of course he never did and never would.
And then if you are a livestock farmer, a whole new scope of knowledge and skills come into play. You have to be a nutritionist, a geneticist, a veterinarian, and a midwife to cows to name just a few. In calving season, which for Bob was February and March, he would check the cows at 10 or 11 p.m. and again at 5 a.m. to make sure all was well. All too often it was not. Then you have to get her into the barn and hopefully assist in the birth, get a healthy calf, and make sure it gets a good first meal. Sometimes a late night or early morning call to the vet is required. Some wonder why the price of beef is high nowadays. Well, how many people do you know who want to leave a warm bed in middle of night, in freezing, snowing, windy conditions and help an unhappy 1,000-pound animal deliver a new calf. Bob did. He wouldn’t do anything else.
But more than being a good farmer, he was a good man, a good husband, a good father, a good grandfather, and a good brother. He gave much more than he took. As Paul Harvey said, “And on the eighth day God made a farmer.”
Bill Adamson
Naperville, IL
