My Favorite Project

One of my favorite projects that I have ever done was not in school. This may seem strange but it is true. The project was none other than raising calves. This may seem pretty typical, right? I mean, I live on a farm and the logical thing to do would be to raise animals. But this was different. I wasn't doing this because I wanted a good grade in a class or because it was what everyone else was doing. I was doing it because I really wanted to have the experience of growing something and watching it develop.

Photo credit: Kevin Shields

I started out with one small black and white Angus calf. She was very small and needed care so I agreed to care for her until she was old enough to not need to be bucket-fed anymore. This turned into me buying her and then keeping her. I later received more opportunities to buy more calves and I took them. After about five calves I ran out of money and was beginning to run out of time. Individually feeding them took up time before and after school and though I enjoyed it because it meant spending time with them, I was also very hard pressed to get other tasks done.

Throughout the time I had them I would go out to the pen when I was stressed and the calves would all come up to me and I really felt like they were there for me. This may sound really weird and I thought so to at first. Sometimes I would go out and run around the pen and they would follow me and if they caught up with me they would run circles around me very excitedly. I really enjoyed having them as company. I genuinely cared for them and I realized that many farmers and ranchers feel the same way but they don't have the same amount of time or energy that I did.

This is why this was by far my favorite project. I was able to find something that I loved to do and I was producing something that would benefit others. I was able to provide a good start to the lives of the calves under my care and when all was said and done, I learned new skills that I hope to continue to use in other parts of my life.

Photo credit: Kevin Shields