Mar 9 2019

Farming

Farming, I looked down on it most of my life. Until I realized what really farming is, I never really gave respect or put the effort needed to understand it until now.

Both my parents, grand parents, people I knew in childhood, most of the people I know had or have owned an agricultural land. When asked what your father's work is, I was glad I dint have to say a farmer instead I was ok to tell that he was a business man.

I have no intention nor there is any necessity to blame it on my parents or the society.  They did really struggle and may be really did fail and struggled so much by being a farmer and making a livelihood out of it.

I was a good kid, I studied well, did learn all of what was told in school with so much conviction untill I got a job. Then too I did the work well for few years until I realized, Is this how I want to live my life? Is this what I wish to do every day for rest of my life? Do I really find it meaningful to do this work and live where I live? And each time I had such thoughts, I always ended up telling myself "NO".

I believe in being natural, be it farming, food, even relationships, the time you wake up, time you go to sleep, what u do with your body? How can you just sit whole day? Why can't you spend some time of your night to see the stars when you go to sleep, it's right up there above your heads every single night. How can you ignore any of these ? Don't everyone get such thoughts? Why don't we pay attention to it ? Why don't we give it a little more thought and give a little respect for it ?

As part of the school curriculum all schools have PT, yoga, dance, karate, 3 languages, singing, painting, sports. When all of these are part of a young kid's education why not agriculture? How can you deny the child of educating himself on where his food comes from and know how he can grow his own tomatoes? Shouldnt we introduce him to growing his food like he learns his languages and numbers ?  Indian schools take so much effort to include English, regional language and Hindi, but why not farming ? How hard can it be ? Can we not spend 4-5 hours of a week on it ? All the school are obligated to have a play ground, why not a garden where children can grow their own plants ?

Life would have been different, I would have may be chosen farming as the degree I want to pursue and would ended up being a farmer myself, I wouldn't have to go through an entire cycle of not knowing and doing what I didn't enjoy and then realising that it's farming I am interested in after so many years of wondering and questioning myself of its depth and  reasoning. I dint have to put my time and effort in convincing myself to accept farming as livelihood and start valuing it.

Let's not do this to our kids, let's not deny them the opportunity of being introduced with the most natural way of living our life's. Let's leave it to the kids to decide and learn to respect their choices like we do with sports, medicine, writer and many other professions to which we have given our social acceptance. Let not put these kids in a position where they have to hesitate in pursuing farming for their livelihood. Let's leave it to them to decide.