3 minute read
Agriculture mom
Agriculture Magazine, September 2020 - Page 15
photo cou tesy ashley cousins Working woman and mother making it work in the world of agriculture
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KRISTEN (BEA R) FRIS BIE Flying D Ranch, Victor
It’s not everyday I write a newspaper article. In fact, this is the first time. It should also be noted that I failed freshman English and have no business in the world of journalism.
With that said, I will tell you what I do know about: being a woman and mother in the world of agriculture. I manage The Flying D Ranch in western Montana along with two other women. I didn’t set out to have an all women run ranch. It was brought together by happenstance or divine design - I’ll leave the interpretation up to you.
The Flying D Ranch isn’t the biggest outfit around. We usually run about 100 cow/calf pairs and hay about 200 acres. Some might argue that we’re not “real ranchers” but everyday we get up with the sun, work hard all day and fall into bed exhausted. We feed, hay, irrigate, doctor, sort, pregnancy check, ride, calve, and do our own mechanicing. That last one is a little questionable at times.
At any given moment you’ll find a handful of horses tied up ready for sorting, gathering, exercising, training, or simply in line to be
Page 16 - Agriculture Magazine, September 2020
shod by one of the gals. You’ll find kids sliding down the rump of their favorite mare as they are being grained and a group of littles piled on a four wheeler going out to move irriga- tion pipe. Someone will show up to look at a saddle, buy a half a beef, or pick up a few ton of hay. It’s a lovely bustle of energy and pure western goodness.
This life is rich and there is a fullness that comes with helping animals in their birth, sickness, and death. The value of these events is not lost on me or my family and I have not shielded my children from the way life is created or lost. Although this valuable knowledge received at an early age has been largely cultivated out of our society, I have seen a resurgence in folks wanting to get their hands dirty and to become more in touch with the land and their source of food. I find great encouragement and hope for our nation in this new-found longing for a more traditional lifestyle.
I could outline the struggles of trying to make it out of the red or what it feels like to be trying to succeed in a male dominated industry. I could articulate the fears I have of trying to carry on a tradition that is fading and a system that encourages bankruptcy; but the reality is that I love what I am doing. There is no struggle that could convince me that I should do something else. What we do is important. Farming, ranching, agriculture, gardening, food preservation, raising animals, connecting with the land, working hard - it is gender and age non-specific and, in whatever amount, we should all be seeking to incorpo- rate these things into our lives and families.
Bear is a full-time wife, mom, rancher, and real estate agent. She spends free time docu- menting her family life through photography and writing using various social media plat- forms. Her Instagram account has 11,000+ followers from all over the world in which she connects with people who have a desire to learn about Montana and ranching.
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