With Fathers Day this Sunday, I thought I would blog about why our farming fathers are a show-winning breed.
Being a farm dad is by no means easy or glamorous, with long hours and changeable schedules meaning they often miss out on important school events, such as my primary school debut as Wolly the Sheep.
Yet our farm dads still play a vital role in our upbringing, providing us country kids with a unique upbringing that town kids could only dream about.
Here are my five reasons why having a farmer for a dad is the best thing ever and why I would not swap my upbringing with anyone else.
Always Hands On
Living on a working farm means everyday is ‘take your child to work day’.
Ever since I can remember, I was involved with farming life, from gathering sheep on the quad bike with my dad, playing on his new tractors and machinery to mimicking our hardworking sheepdog when herding a flock of sheep.
I even farmed in my school uniform (on occasions!) for small tasks such as turning sheep on the road or shooing them up Pendle Hill.
My dad not only acted as a teacher through this hands on approach, informing me about animals, nature, diseases, life and death, but demonstrated the importance of hard work if I wanted to succeed in – even if that meant working 24/7 and doing tasks that I don’t enjoy doing.
Animals galore
Another perk of having a farmer for a dad is that you have the option of owning the coolest of pets.
Forget the usual dogs and rabbits – I’m talking ponies, pet lambs, calves, farmyard kittens and even tups!
I definitely became a daddy’s girl after he purchased Beauty, my first ever pony, following Foot and Mouth in 2001.
Yet having a range of pets meant that I grew up having responsibilities in terms of caring for the animals I acquired, like my pony. She had to be brushed, ridden, mucked out etc…
So farm dads are fairly lenient about having pets as it teaches children about the importance of responsibilities and the real life consequences if chores/tasks are not completed.
Unique Toys
Growing up, I had a completely different set of toys to most of my classmates, such as a toy tractor I used to drive around in to pretending to be a Dalek in a spare bale wrap box during haytime.
Other toys included whatever dad could make in his spare time, like a tractor tyre swing.
Jack of All Trades
Farming fathers have this amazing superhero ability whereby they are an electrician, plumber, mechanic, vet, farmer, welder at any given stage of the day.
From erecting a new fence to mending broken down quad bikes to fixing the milk machine, it seems apparent that there is nothing our farming dads cannot do, except work iPhones…
They have shown us that as long as you work hard, you can be anything that you want to be and that you can be a multi-faceted person if you put your mind to it.
Driving Instructor
Persuading your dad to give you a driving lesson when you live on a farm is no problem whatsoever.
They are incredibly keen for you to learn to drive so they don’t have to ferry you around anymore (they call it ‘independence’).
But more likely, they are excited for that extra pair of hands so that you can drive the tractor at Haytime whilst they go and do something else.
Here’s to all the farming dads out there – you are doing a great job!
And finally … Happy Fathers Day Dad!
Hannah Binns 