Trust us to Do Better!

There's a Maya Angelo quote I keep posted next to my mirror, right by a picture of my family and my adorable little nephews. It reads "Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better!" I look at it every single day. I read it every single day. It has meaning every single day of my life as an agricultural student. 

"Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better!" -Maya Angelo

We in agriculture are doing the best we can. We work hard, sleep little, and never complain while bringing food to the table of our family and yours. We care for our land, we care for our livestock, and we care for our families, including our 4 legged companions that keep us company in the tractor, combine, truck, or pickup. We love it. We love the challenges, the struggles, the setbacks, and the rewards. We're doing the best we can with what we have. But we can do better. We WANT to do better.

Last May, I traveled to Ireland on a Food and
Agribusiness Tour and was given the
opportunity to visit with Irish producers
about their day-to-day practices as
well as policy issues they face.

We strive to be better. That's why parents like mine send their children out on an adventure called college. They encourage us to leave the farm, take a leap, and learn to fly. Thousands of dollars are spent a year teaching the younger generation like myself how to do better. We put in the time and the effort because we have a desire to learn how to care for the fields and the livestock. We want to be able to do what our families have done for years, but better! We know how, we see day in and day out the passion we all share. We build relationships with experts in different fields so we can all work together to feed a growing population. We travel the world experiencing different agricultural systems and talking with producers in different countries comparing and contrasting how farms and ranches are run. We are given these chances for once in a lifetime experiences...


But that's not enough. We need to be allowed to change! We need to be trusted to take the knowledge we have gained and put it to use. Why do we spend so much money on research and advancements and agricultural education if we aren't willing to use that knowledge, that research, and that education? Trust us, we're not the future, we're the now! "...when you know better, do better!"

An Irish farm located in
South West Ireland near Cork.

Let me use my (almost) Bachelors of Science in Agriculture, Animal Sciences & Industry degree. Come December 18, 2015 I will no longer be a student at Kansas State University, but I will still be in the field of agriculture, I will still be working to better the world, and I will always be a Wildcat!

Trust us to care for the livestock in the most humane way. Trust us to care for the fields to keep them in the best shape for many years to come. Trust us to put a safe and healthy product onto your table.

We've learned better, we know better, now let us DO better!