Summer has come and gone, the Great Minnesota Get-Together has started and that means school is right around the corner. As a student at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, that also means it’s almost time for football season, specifically Gopher Game Day. Just 3 days, 6 hours, and 47 minutes before the first kick. But, who’s counting?
When it’s Gopher Game Day, you can find my friends and I in the front row of section 129 cheering on our beloved gophers. But in order to get that front row seat, we get in line about two hours before the gate opens. Now that’s dedication. Dressed in our gopheralls, we are ready to sing that rouser as loud and proud as possible.
“Minnesota, Hats off to thee!
To thy colors, true we shall ever be,
Firm and strong, united are we.
Rah! Rah! Rah! For Ski-U-Mah,
Rah! Rah! Rah! Rah! Rah for the U of M.
M-I-N-N-E-S-O-T-A
Minnesota!
Minnesota!
Yeaaaaaaah Gophers!”
As one big student body, each of us in the student section shares a common passion for the Minnesota Gophers.
But the University of Minnesota Gophers are not the only “home team” I cheer for. Another “home team” I stand for is the agriculture community. The same passion I have when it’s Gopher Game Day comes out each day as I live out the positive message of agriculture.
As agriculturalists, we need to share our stories, or our “hometown pride,” with others. The agriculture community I am proud to be part of has so many stories to share. Each of us has a unique perspective and a different way of sharing that perspective with others. This may look like sharing our love of FFA or 4-H through social media. It may also look like engaging in conversations with fairgoers who may not get the opportunity to experience agriculture in the same way we do. No matter how we go about sharing our “hometown pride,” at the end of the day we circle back to the same messages. As stewards of the land or caretakers of livestock, we value the importance of producing a wholesome and nutritious product for consumers.
Within this agriculture community, we may not live nearby or own the same kind of livestock, but we are one team. In the Minnesota Rouser, we hear, “Firm and strong, united are we.” In my opinion, this could not be any more true in agriculture. Through the pleasures and challenges farmers face, we still remain strong and united. Together, we are able to get through those difficult times in agriculture. We have each other to build us up, bring us hope, and keep the faith in what is to come. Faith in the future of agriculture, together as one team.
Just like my friends and I share our love for the Minnesota Gophers, let’s share that same love for the agriculture community. We may not be wearing our gopheralls, but we do wear our passion, our pride, and our dedication for the industry the feeds America.
What “home team” are you rooting for? How do you spread that “hometown pride” with others each day?
Stationed by the Ear of Corn,
Laura Church
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