Thought-Provoking January

by Abbey Taylor

Welcome to January - barely! The second last day of January. Just in time for me to try to capture the essence of a month that I love (which is sometimes an unpopular opinion).

You all know what January means to you - maybe vacation, maybe hibernation, maybe walks in the snow, maybe you work outside in the cold, maybe January just feels like a month of short days and a cold vehicle on the drive to work.

January on the farm is a lot of different things too. For many farmers, it is extension cords frozen in the snow to plug in transport trucks and tractors every night, so that a load of corn can be trucked and the feed can be delivered to the cattle the next day. This year especially, it is plowing or blowing or shoveling snow almost daily for all the farmyards and houses. It is carrying pails of hot water around every day to thaw out waterbowls that have frozen so the livestock can drink. It is cold fingers and toes, but not being able to go inside until the job is done and everyone is looked after.

In January, people with livestock are outside doing chores on the bright sunny days and also the windy blizzardy days. Some farms are lambing or calving and going out to the barn through the night to check for newborns and keep them warm. And I'm grateful for all the people who do all of this so that we can have meat, milk, food etc. all year round.

January looks different on every farm. For me, January is a mix of working inside and out. I keep chickens over the winter, but all my cattle are gone as of November. I help with chores for a bunch of different farms, so yes, I do often look like the bundled up farmer in the photo!! However, it isn't day-in day-out daily livestock chores for me - the people I'm grateful for in the previous paragraph are the ones who don't get a day off, even in the winter.

January is when I have the chance for random, non-pressing jobs, like fixing the rope on the cattle chute that broke in October. It's when I sit at my laptop often, planning out the coming year - adjusting butcher dates that must be booked many months in advance; making a grazing plan to ensure there will be enough feed for the number of cattle I have; analyzing last year and adjusting for this year. It's when I experiment with developing more tallow products like lip balm and soap (stay tuned!!). It's when I cut and split wood with my family and cover the neighbour's chores when they're gone away.

A friend recently reminded me that January can be a depressing month for a lot of people, and I understand that feeling too. In October, when we're harvesting corn and planting wheat and hauling cattle and picking up beef, I always think, "In January I'll rest and enjoy myself because I've worked so hard!" Then along comes January and it sometimes feels like I'm unsuccessful and lazy because the jobs are different - instead of physically moving my cattle every day, I'm at the computer planning/strategizing for the year ahead, but with nothing to show for it yet. The accomplishments are less visible, or won't be visible at all for several months. It's a month when the sense of purpose can be low.

But despite it all, there is something that I hope everyone gets a chance to enjoy in January - and that is January evenings. They're dark, they're snowy, and they're a great time to be inside enjoying the comforts of home. For the majority of the year I spend my evenings in the fields, in a tractor, in the pasture, in the barn, or at my computer answering emails because I was doing all that other stuff during the day. And those aren't bad ways to spend an evening; I cherish those days too. Those evenings in the pasture are what I rave about all summer to you folks!

But - in January, in the evenings, I read books. In January, I play the piano. In January, I make plans with friends and I know I won't have to cancel. And oh, it is glorious. I honestly lay down at night and think "What would I do without Januaries?" I am grateful for the blanket of snow outside which gives me permission to stay in to both plan and relax before the upcoming season. Even if it does mean frozen water bowls.

It's nice to appreciate every season for what it has to offer, and January is no different. I hope that you are able to enjoy January, and whatever it means for you.