The Art of Being Real

I have some gigs in the next few weeks.
No, this post is not a shameless self-promotion...but if you're a member of either the Knox County Farm Bureau or McLean County Chamber of Commerce, look out!!

Anyway, my focus is a little different this time. I've gained a lot of confidence in my ability to speak about agriculture, and it's not because I have been out choring in the snow with Joe. It's because I have decided to keep my focus on being real, being who I am, talking about what I live.

I am trying to master the Art of Being Real.

I know, funny concept, huh?

Anyway, in the next few weeks, I'm hopeful that my openness about my life as a farm wife, experiences as a "rep" for farm moms out there, and my limited knowledge about agriculture will come across as real, as I will be speaking to folks who are already in the biz, farming the land, have studied ag econ and held positions in agricultural organizations.

I'm not super nervous about this, surprisingly, and that is thanks to the transparency I hope to convey about our life.

In the first segment of my life as a farm wife, I worried about fitting in, figuring out where or with whom I should align myself. After all, I wasn't a "real" farm kid, "real" farm wife, or anything like that. However, how can one pinpoint what is "real?" What is the definition of a "real" farm wife? Is it one that drives and operates machinery? Is it one that keeps the house together and everyone fed? Is it one that works off the farm and keeps her nose out of the business? There are so many definitions, so I refuse to worry about which one I fall under.

Instead, in my (again) limited training in being a small-time spokesperson, as well as through my ramblings (which this post is a doosey of a rambler, have I mentioned I'm home alone with a sick kid and three others who have been cooped up in the house for a week? Bear with me.), I have found that by just spouting off what is going on and how I have reacted to it, I have found my voice. I have seen my kids become farm kids, but even within our family, each child has her (and soon to be his) own relationship with the farm. Anna is our doer (so far), Josie is cautiously interested, and Amelia is two...she just goes along with whatever she's told. Jack will hopefully be a doer, as that is the knee-jerk reaction I have about having a boy around here, but if he's not, oh well. We have to let him call the shots.

My parents did.

Joe's parents did.

And one farm kid and one non-farm kid have combined to become a family who just wants to do right to the land and put food on the table and kids through college.

So, in my next few weeks, my quest will be to perfect  my different presentations with the hope that I can convey my message in a way that I can be interpreted as real.

That, and finding the perfect pair of black platform pumps to wear with my dress.