How heroic are you feeling today? Do you feel like you could take on the world?  Would you go toe-to-toe over a controversial topic on social media? Could you take on an unreasonable 2-year-old who won’t take off his new cowboy boots in bed? There are days when I feel mighty enough to conquer the world. But I have to admit there are days that when trouble raises its ugly head, I would rather run and hide.

 

You’re getting ready for a graduation open house and you need all hands on deck, when suddenly your husband walks in and says the hay is ready to bale. You knew he shouldn’t have mowed hay three days before the big event, but you also know you have to make hay while the sun shines.

Then he turns to you and says, “Can you drive the baler?” Do you drop the bag of mulch you’re putting in the flower bed in front of the house, smile and say, “I’m on it!” Or do you melt into a puddle of overwhelming tears, whining inaudible words about mulch, flowers, embarrassment – and, just once, “my mother told me this would happen if I married a farmer?” It depends on how heroic you feel.

Take the 3 a.m. wakeup call from your dog. You’re sound sleep on one of the coldest nights known to man. It feels like northern Canada and theblowing snow has driven you under your blankets and nothing will pull you out. Except that persistent dog.

You get up and open the door to let her out, bracing yourself for the howling wind to whirl through the open door only to see why your dog woke you up: A cow standing at the bottom of your porch steps.

Do you put on the layers of clothing and stomp through the snow to chase her back in? Or do you shut the door and get back in bed, pretending you never saw her, knowing your alarm will go off in 90 minutes anyway? It depends on how heroic you feel.

Or, how about that annoying salesman who keeps coming to the farm? You just sat down with a hot cup of coffee and the last day-old doughnut to scroll through social media in the 15 minutes you have before you head back out to the barn to wash the pipeline before the milk inspector is due back.

Do you answer the door, knowing he will want to talk and maybe even ask for a cup of coffee and half your doughnut? Or do you run into the bathroom and pretend you’re not home? It depends on how heroic you feel.

Feelings of heroism can come and go with the highs and lows of your mood. But be assured, ladies of the dairy industry, you were born with a cape and the whole world can see it tucked neatly into your Carhartts.

Regardless of how you feel today, know this: You are amazing. No Matter. What.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Melissa Hart may write to her in care of this publication.