Being Grateful for All the People Who Produce and Gather Our Food!

More than 30 years ago I was back home in Oklahoma for a visit.  One of my friends, who was a full-time farmer, was harvesting his first cantaloupe crop.  He had a bumper crop.  The soil was good.  Rains came at the right time and the crop was ready to harvest.  I don’t remember how many acres of cantaloupe he had, but it was a large field.  It was a good summer day to harvest and it was hot and dry.

By the time we drove out to the field, the temperature was in the 90s and climbing.  My friend had hired migrant workers to harvest these rapidly ripening cantaloupe.  He had hired this particular family because they were highly recommended.  They knew how to harvest cantaloupe!  Apparently, there is a specific way to cut it off the vine and handle it so it doesn’t bruise.

I looked out across the field and realized there were 3 generations of this family out in the field, gathering the fruit and handling it carefully!  Grandmother, Grandfather, Mom and Dad, and 2 children, somewhere between 7 and 12 years old were in the field.  When we drove up and got out of the trucks, they all looked up, waved, and went right back to work.

My friend was a good farmer to work for.  He made sure they had plenty of water and checked in with them during the day.  I decided I would try harvesting a few cantaloupe myself.   I got one of the large, and very sharp knives and walked out into the field.  It was hot!  The field was a bit sandy and the sand was very warm.  I bent over to cut the cantaloupe from the vine and discovered it was not so easy.  It took several tries for me to cut that fruit loose.  And, it was heavy!

I managed to cut 3 fruits off the vine and then stood up.   My back hurt!  I had sand on my jeans and only 3 cantaloupe.  I looked back at the trucks, then around the field at the Hispanic family steadily working their way down the rows.  They were all wearing loose clothing with long sleeves and long pants.  And, they were all bending and cutting and stacking cantaloupe as they moved through the field.

I suddenly realized how much time, effort, and know-how it took just to get cantaloupe out of the field and into the big trucks!  I was hot, and tired, and thirsty! I only had 3 medium-sized cantaloupe to show for my effort. I was amazed by this family, all together, in the field, in the Sun, working all day.  From that time on, almost every time I see a cantaloupe or a watermelon, I think of that family.  

I know my friend was a good boss and took care of all the people he hired for plowing, or seeding, or harvesting.  I also know he was probably paying the going wage.  I always hoped that family had a good home somewhere across the border.  I hoped their children were able to go to school every year.  And, I hoped they were always safe and healthy.  

I began paying more attention to the people who were harvesting our fruits and vegetables, working hard to get crops out of the fields and into the grocery stores.  Now, when I sit down at the dinner table to eat, I do my best to remember to bless all the people all around the world who plant, tend, and harvest the food we buy in the grocery store.  Working in those fields is real work and can be dangerous, especially for children.

On Labor Day, I am again reminded of all those families who tend the land, the crops, the cattle, the sheep, the goats, gather the eggs, and milk the cows.  I know from experience that farming is not easy or simple.  It is work, every day.  Yes, we have much better equipment and technology, but someone has to take care of all those high-tech combines and tractors.  The farm equipment we have now cannot be fixed with a strand of bailing wire and a bit more oil in the crankcase.  Parts and highly-trained mechanics are very expensive!  And, farm equipment tends to break down just when you need it the most!

So, this week, not just on Labor Day, whenever you are shopping and pick up fruits or vegetables, remember someone, somewhere picked that for you.  Let’s remember those folks whenever we buy food.  A lot of people, around the world, have worked hard to produce the food we eat every day! 

God Bless Them All !!!