There is something about the start of the new school year that makes you realize just how quickly time moves. It seems just like yesterday it was May, and the kids were starting summer vacation.
As a father of three, I’ve experienced several first days of school. I know the familiar rhythm of back-to-school shopping, taking pictures on the front porch, the excitement about seeing friends again and, depending on their age, maybe a little reluctance to head out the door.
And every year, I find myself thinking the same thing: How did we get here so fast? It’s especially pertinent now that my oldest child is a high school senior.
In agriculture, we spend a lot of time thinking about commodities. We watch the price of corn, soybeans, cattle and countless other products that we work hard to produce. We think about the cost of land, equipment and the inputs it takes to raise a crop or care for livestock.
But there is one commodity none of us can produce more of, no matter how hard we work.
Time.
It may be the most valuable thing we have because once it is gone, we cannot buy it back.
We probably understand that better than most. Agriculture is measured in seasons. Planting leads to harvest. Spring pastures become hay for winter. The field that was green in June looks completely different by October. Year after year, the seasons come and go, whether we are ready for them or not.
Our children grow much the same way.
One day, they are riding beside you in the tractor or side-by-side, asking a hundred questions. Before long, they are driving themselves, heading off to practice, starting another school year, thinking about college or beginning lives and careers of their own.
It happens faster than we expect.
There will always be another chore that needs finished, another meeting to attend, another email to answer and another problem waiting for us tomorrow. Agriculture, like life, has a way of keeping us busy.
But our kids will only be this age once.
As we settle into another school year, I hope we all remember to appreciate the moments that can sometimes seem ordinary while we are living them. Eat dinner together when you can. Sit in the stands. Go to the school program. Toss the football. Ask about their day and listen to the answer. Take the picture, even when they complain about it. (Trust me, they do complain, but the compromise is my agreement not to post it on Facebook.)
Those moments eventually become the memories we treasure most.
The work we do as farmers and ranchers matters. Feeding and fueling our communities, state and nation is an incredible responsibility. But one of the greatest crops any of us will ever raise is the next generation.
So as another school year begins, hug your kids a little tighter. Tell them you are proud of them. Wish their teachers well and appreciate the people helping them grow.
Most importantly, make time for them.
Because we can grow another crop next year. We can rebuild a herd. We can replace a piece of equipment.
But we can never get yesterday back.
And there is no commodity more precious than time.
