This post is titled, "I am proud of us!".
(Could also be titled, "Why most farmers do not need a gym membership!
Two months ago a group of us started a certified organic cattle company here at the farm. The cattle are on a rotational grazing system and our fields were certified organic so that hay for winter feed will come right from our fields. We made a commitment that the cattle will be organically grass fed/grass finished.
It is now haying season and our tractor is broken, but the fields don't know that!
Therefore, we have been tag-teaming the cutting and fluffing of the hay by hand with a scythe, a weed-wacker star blade, and a pitchfork. We still have a lot to go, but honestly, the challenge has been well worth it. For real, few things feel as good as keeping a commitment and a job well done.
I really don't miss the noise of the tractor, the fuel cost, or the investment into hay cutting equipment. I realize we are considered a starter herd but I am always thinking about ways more people could have the opportunity to farm by keeping operations small and doing most of the work themselves. I like researching how farmers survived for millennia before automation. This has been my latest learning experience of that.