Farmer Focus: Lucky to see family amid Covid-19 pandemic

The government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has been bungled here. One side (usually government employees with guaranteed income and sick pay) wants a complete shutdown, while self-employed people and businesses need everything open.

The compromise has been a half-hearted shutdown that hasn’t really worked.

We’ve just had Thanksgiving week in the US. Taking time to appreciate what you have and who you share it with is well worth a holiday and more important than ever this year.

Working with your family on the ranch every day can get a bit much sometimes, but there are so many people completely isolated from their families now.

See also: Farmer Focus: Weathering same storm in different boats

I’ve been able to work with my second daughter. We have been giving shots to superovulate donor cows. We will artificially inseminate nearly 400 head in the coming week.

In addition to my family, I also have my health. Despite having faced rotator cuff surgery, it goes without saying there are people in 2020 who have bigger health problems than me. 

Plus, my aching shoulder forced me to get in better shape. I lost 20kg and started eating healthily to deal with it, and being better prepared for Covid-19 was a bonus. 

It isn’t politically correct to downplay the virus, but my demographic has a 99.98% survival rate. I will roll those dice.

My 95-year-old grandmother-in-law had Covid-19 and the family didn’t even tell her because they didn’t want her to worry. She beat it in a week. 

I have friends who have compared it to a mild hangover. However, for those with obesity, lung cancer and other respiratory issues, it can be a huge problem.

I live in quite a rural part of the world. When I was growing up, all I wanted to do was escape rural Kansas, but in a year like 2020, it’s a pretty good place to be.

I feel a world away from scenes of rioting and chaos on the news. Our tractors have never had their keys pulled and my home doesn’t have locking doors – it doesn’t need them.

All in all, I have an incredibly blessed life. But if 2020 put a little adversity in my way to make me stop and appreciate just how good I have it, then hopefully I can learn and advance.

Daniel Mushrush is a Farmer Focus writer from Kansas. Read his biography.