Nature versus Nurture

   It is with great pride that I call myself a farmer.  It requires early mornings, long  hours, and lots of nurturing to both plants and animals.  In the end there  are no guarantees that all of your hard work will actually be a success.  You just have to keep waking up, putting your boots on, and reminding yourself to have faith.

   When nature decides to bring a tornado down on your house, it's not a  surprise that you don't wake up to find the aftermath as bright and technicolored as Dorthy did when she landed in Oz.  In one instant all of the love, hard work and devotion that you have poured into your home and your farm can be destroyed and there are no amount of words than can describe the emotions that one goes through in a situation such as
this.  

    We were all set to open our doors for the new season when a tornado hit our farm. I will never forget the sound of my boots against the wet floor of our silo store as we tried to assess the damage in the dark.  There was nothing we could do except wait for morning and begin to re-build.

   What we never could have anticipated is the outpouring of love we would receive not only from our neighbors and loved ones, but from complete strangers as well.   Together we began the long process of restoring what was lost.  It wasn't until we had finished a long day's work and were praying together than I realized that what we had lost was nothing compared to what we had gained. 

   Our cup runneth over with friends and blessings.  We were able to witness first hand the kindness and selflessness of others.  Angels do truly exist on Earth and we have been blessed to have met several of them and to have worked beside them as we have started to put our farm back together.