Melissa Hart

Opinion

Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I’ve had to ask for a ride to school?

With no available vehicle for me to drive today, I had to text two of my kids to see if they could take me to school and bring me home. What a crazy experience for the mom who spent years dropping kids off and picking kids up at school!

And how many times I’ve thought they could just ride their bike to school; it would be good for them. Yes, I thought about climbing on that treacherous bike … but we all know how that turned out the last time. I’m not going to try that stunt again.

During this busy week, I’ve been interviewing people like mad. Yesterday I had the pleasure of interviewing a man who is involved in the Farmer Veteran Coalition. This is a group that helps veterans get started with a career in agriculture after serving in the military.

They found that so many of our war vets have roots in rural communities and when they come home from deployment they enjoy the solace of working or owning a farm. This group assists veterans in finding areas of agriculture where they can have meaningful careers. Is that a great idea, or what?

And if that wasn’t enough to inspire me, I just got off the phone with a young man who is an American Star National Finalist in FFA. Loren King is a former state FFA officer and is running for national office. When we finished with the interview, I told him if he didn’t win the contest and wasn’t elected to national office, I would protest.

He was a rock star to say the least, but it was when he said he would love to come spend time visiting our little local FFA chapter that I realized he is a real servant leader. This is the kind of leadership all of us need to aspire to – helping others achieve greatness.

Also, encouraging others to be their best and making sure each person knows they were created for a purpose, with gifts and talents that are specially designed for them to reach their God-given potential in life. This is the kind of natural resource that we need to preserve in America: Youngsters who realize the value of agriculture but, more importantly, they comprehend the value of a human life.

These kinds of kids are filling up our classrooms across America. We just need to give them a chance and an opportunity to grow and discover who they are and what they can be. And that takes careful cultivation.

What young life are you cultivating today?

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.