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Kurt Johnson
There’s something uniquely Nebraska about fall harvest, even for a city kid.
It’s massive in scope, literally and figuratively. It’s fun to watch as the landscape changes by the day, with ripe fields of soybeans and corn being swept clean, proceeds headed for the elevator. And it’s exciting to see friends and business colleagues out doing what they do, testing the limits of their well-known Midwest work ethic and loving every minute of it.
Growing up in western Nebraska there was a lot more dryland farming in my neck of the woods, and of course the technology was vastly different back in that era. The crops and machinery were all a bit smaller, as I recall, though some of that might just be my perception as a teenager who didn’t really embrace what harvest means to Nebraska farmers.
Somewhere along the line my perception changed and the whole science/business/lifestyle of it all grabbed my attention. I’ve written countless stories about farming and harvest over the years and jumped in a combine a few years back to take pictures, all of which gave me a broader appreciation for the sense of satisfaction farmers feel this time of year. I get a similar feeling every Tuesday when another edition rolls off the press, but to have to wait a whole year for another cycle of your life’s work to be completed must create a whole different level of anticipation, especially with so many uncontrollable variables at play.
These days, you can learn a lot online about harvest and all things farming from Hamilton County’s own Laura (Carlson) Wilson via her Laura Farms YouTube channel. I spent some time this week with brothers-in-law from Ohio and New Mexico, both of which were tuned into an episode of Laura doing her harvest thing. They knew the YouTube wonder girl was from Nebraska, but had no idea her roots, and crops, were planted so close to their sister Paula and I. It was fun to make that connection, and also a hoot to share that we know the extended Carlson family as friends.
That kind of connection is what makes harvest so special, the older I get. I know and respect so many of the men and women out in that combine, driving that grain cart, working at the elevator, fixing the breakdowns and playing the many roles it takes to Git-R-Done. Harvest is a business transaction, and a massive one at that, but it’s also just fascinating as heck to see Mother Nature, technology, land and man converge in such a visible way.
As a small-town business owner, I like many feel the direct ripple effect of the ag economy flowing through the community, but it’s a whole different vibe to take a drive through the countryside these days, soaking in the actual process of bringing in the bounty, even if vicariously.
KURT JOHNSON can be reached at kjohnson@ hamilton.net
