All About the Ladies

Happy International Women's Day!

Did you even remember this day?

Or are you like me because if it wasn't for Facebook to remind me about this day, you'd just think today was a Tuesday?

Either way, let's celebrate the ladies today, shall we? We are heavy on the female side in our house, so Farmer Joe is probably thinking it IS just a Tuesday, since every day needs to be somewhat of a Women's Day at the Webels!

What makes today interesting to me is that there's also a hashtag and selfie celebration: #ilooklikeafarmer, #FarmHer, and #farmlikeagirl. I have really enjoyed seeing all the pictures of how women are making their presence known in agriculture, pictured with their calves, doing hog chores, hauling hay, working ground.

It's pretty amazing how much a woman truly farms.

However, once again. There's no "me" in these pictures. I'm just over here, fixing lunches, playing with sidewalk chalk and, currently, blogging about my farm life, but I feel like my picture would inevitably just look more like a "Tuesday," and less like a celebration.

While I see myself as someone who is active in the agricultural realm, I am a part of our operation way, way in the background. My pictures would be me flying a kite with Jack with a very, very rural background, but my job is technically one that is not just "farming."

I'm not writing this to get a "you do so much, Emily," pat on the back or a "you're really not a farmer, so celebrate just being a woman," I'm just saying that I need to get over myself and take a dang picture, because my job on this farm, in this operation, is just as important as one that requires a CDL or chemical application license. 

And this is to be celebrated, too.

It's my own insecurities in the agriculture world that are holding me back. So many of my ag friends are ones that wear heels more than boots, but can talk manure spreading, nitrogen, and crop insurance. They are women who spend a majority of their time traveling and talking and teaching, and then come home to Carhartts and chores.

This group of "FarmHers" is pretty amazing. We're so multifaceted and so diverse, there's not one picture that depicts us as a "farmer."

So today, I am celebrating my life as a FarmHer. While I hardly know how to run the lawnmower, I have a role on this farm, and I am going to celebrate myself alongside those who are the true farmers.

Doing my #FarmHer specialty: blogging!

Thanks for celebrating all of us today. 

Side note: I'm also not writing this to get the men all riled up. You're important, too, and you wear many hats, but today, it's about the girls.

I promise to sing your praises on National Men's Day...whenever Facebook tells me to.