Growing a Farmer: Some Thoughts

Growing up, I would always hear stories about my dad's time as a farmer growing up in rural China; because of this, I've always held a fascination towards the culture of farming. Through my dad's stories, I was able to get a lot of insight into how Chinese farms functioned, and the day to day routine of his family's story; as such, reading Kurt Timmermeister's Growing a Farmer was very interesting for me because it gave me an insight into the American farm and the differences and similarities between the two farms.

What struck me as particularly interesting about the first 8 chapters of Timmermeister's book, however, was his persistence and determination to succeed as a farmer, even though he had encountered many setbacks throughout his farming career, such as two shipments of dead bees and deer eating his new apple trees. Furthermore, I found it to be very intriguing and admirable that he gave up a very successful career in the restaurant business (a notoriously difficult industry to achieve success in) in order to pursue a career that carried as high risk as being a farmer because it was his passion. I think that it represents a very different way of thinking about the future that is particularly refreshing, especially given the career-driven mindset of many people today. As such, I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the book and discovering more about Kurt's story from his unique perspective.