Staying positive in tough times

    This week marks the first of our 10 Farmers Advocate issues this year. Our FA editions are published the last Friday of each month from February through November. It appears in all three of our papers, the Neepawa Banner & Press, the Virden Empire-Advance and the Rivers Banner. Seeing as the three papers started in 1896, 1885 and 1908 respectively, I am inclined to ponder about all the changes to farming that have taken place since 1885.
1885 is a long time ago. It’s 15 years before my long-deceased grandparents were married. 1885 is 22 years before my dad was born (1907). It’s 63 years before I was born.
    My dad would have been able to relate to farming in 1885 to some extent, as he grew up on a tiny farm near Christieville, Quebec and farmed there with his father using horses and even hand scythes. When he began farming on his own near Muir, Manitoba in 1933, it was with horses. After serving in WWll, he went farming again at Holland, Manitoba. His first vehicle and machinery at Holland were horse drawn. He did switch from horses to a Case VA tractor in 1946, and had a succession of tractors through to his retirement in the mid-1980s. His first vehicle was a Model T car converted to a truck, I believe, but I have no memory of it. His next car was a 1928 Chevy four door Landau model. I remember that one. How I wish I had that car today, as it was beautiful and sits only in my memory and my family photo album. It was followed by a 1938 Plymouth, a 1951 International Harvester pick up, a 1958 IHC truck and then a variety of cars until his passing in 1987.
    I guess all that is somewhat irrelevant, but the transition from horses to tractors and various trucks and cars is illustrative of how things have changed from 1885 to1985. The transition was stark, but not as stark as the changes we have seen in the years since 1985.
    In the passing 40 years, farming has changed to a point where it’s almost unrecognizable and almost out of anyone’s price range. The inflation in land prices has made millionaires of some retiring farmers and debt slaves to some of those who have come along behind.
    As I write this column, the ever bombastic President Trump has flung out even more tariff threats. I can’t think of a time when we were made more aware of international trade relations than we are today. It’s interesting to note that tariffs, both inside and outside of Canada have been pushing and pulling agriculture on both the production and  supply side for years. In the early years of Confederation, tariffs were widespread. If I have my history straight, it was Canada’s first prime minister, John A. Macdonald, who imposed tariffs on US made farm machinery so as to prop up the eastern Canadian manufacturers and force Canadian farmers to buy Canadian machinery rather than cheaper imported farm machinery.
    I can’t predict what will happen with tariffs and trade wars but I can be assured of a few things.
I have said many times that we need to look after Faith, Family, Friends and Finances, and in that order.
Our family has faced economic difficulties a few times in our lives. We may face them again and I know that my kids, grandkids and great grands face some struggles.
    But this I know, God loves us and it’s important to follow his teachings. Love your neighbour as yourself, follow the Ten Commandments. Be aware of the pitfalls that may lie ahead.
    I have also said that the sun will come up tomorrow and regardless of how tough things might seem to be unfolding, there will also be many things to be thankful for.
    To put it bluntly, if you don’t think we live in a land of plenty, then you haven’t observed the 40 foot long shelves of potato chips and snack food in most stores or the pallets of pet food.
    There is always lots to grumble about, but it doesn’t do much good. It’s much more productive to get off our butts and do something productive. Any able bodied person who thinks they have things tough, aren’t living with the right attitude. 
    Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are the writer’s personal views and are not to be taken as being the view of the newspaper staff.