"This work is preparation, and preparation is one of the most powerful tools we have for our mental health."
Colleen Stegenga
Columnist
About
Colleen Stegenga is a licensed social worker in private practice with her own business, Embracing Change Counseling Services, specializing in mental health support for farmers, ranchers, and agricultural families. Reach her at colleen@embracingchangecs.com or visit www.embracingchangecs.com.
"When kids grow up around the operation, when they're included, asked questions and given small jobs as they're able, they build something that can't be manufactured later: a felt sense of belonging to the place."
The farm bill passed by the House includes a study of mental health services available to farmers, ranchers and agricultural professionals. Our mental health columnist explains what that means in practical terms.
Nobody puts it in the vows. There is no line that says “I promise to love you through harvest season, through the years the rain does not come ...” But for farm couples across rural America, that is exactly what the vows mean.
There is a piece of ground in eastern South Dakota that is slowly becoming something I've been dreaming about for a long time.
"Our church offered a blessing of the farmers last week. It was simple. It was profound. And I haven't stopped thinking about it since."
Farm families know something about showing up. You show up for planting, for calving, for harvest, for neighbors down the road when hail takes their crop. But when it comes to caring for your own aging parents ... the "who does what" can get complicated fast.
"Legacy on the farm is often framed as a practical matter. ... But the legacy that lives longest isn’t recorded in deeds or balance sheets. It lives in what we model."
