Alo—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 14,1984
This Week's^
IMRi-vie
Postscript
to Farm Show
BY DICK ANGLESTEIN
Some thoughts about the 1984 Farm Show:
Everyone has their favorite event or activity
during Farm Show Week. These can range
from a particular livestock judging event to
hurriedly wolfing down a baked potato oozing
in butter and washing it down with a
milkshake.
But for me the most meaningful of events
doesn’t even take place in the Farm Show
Complex. But it’s held in the Forum in
downtown Harrisburg on Wednesday af
ternoon.
I’m referring to the Mid-Winter Convention
of the Pennsylvania FFA Association.
This year's convention was even more
meaningful for me. Approaching my fourth
year at Lancaster Farming and a close
association with FFA activities, I was able this
year to witness and chronicle the growth and
development of a number of these blue
jacketed young men and women from the time
they were the greenest of Greenhands to the
present achievements of Keystone Degree
holders, state officers or top proficiency
winners.
And I've found that being able to actually
see and measure such growth and maturing in
FFA’ers is more the rule than the exception.
While preparation and work with a livestock
project to be judged may cover a period of
months, an FFA career that leads to a
Keystone Degree generally encompasses four
years or more. And the values and knowledge
acquired over this longer span will likely
remain with a youth a whole lot longer.
A particular project may help to prepare one
better for a particular agricultural vocation,
but the entire FFA and vo-ag period helps to
prepare one for life itself.
The FFA convention also has a broader
Farm Calendar
Saturday, Jan. 14
N.J. Holstein Association annual
meeting at 2 p.m. at Charlie’s
Other Brother, Mt. Holly.
Dinner dance at 6; 30 p.m.
Monday, Jan. 16
Bradford Co. dairy festival
meeting at 7:45 p.m. at the
Fnedenshutten Restaurant,
Wyalusing.
Otis
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Timber sale workshop from 8:45
a.m. to noon in Mt. Pleasant,
Del.
Coping with stress seminar at
Lancaster Farm and Home
Center from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30
p.m. Second session scheduled
for Jan. 23.
Cumberland Co. dairy support
plan meeting at 1 p.m. at the
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cross-section of the entire state. If you follow
the livestock judging results from year to year,
many of the names and pictures stay the same
and it becomes a refreshing rarity to see a
"newcomer" break into the champion’s circle.
And to see the lack of any generation gap
between the jacketed youths and their adult
advisors, who range from the vo-ag teachers
on the chapter level to those on the state level,
helps perpetuate a feeling of unbridled op
timism in the future of ag that will largely rest
on those shoulders once they outgrow the
jackets.
The State FFA Band always kicks off the
convention. One of their opening selections
this year was "Eye of the Tiger" from Rocky 111.
It’s a particularly appropriate selection.
For its lively tempo personifies the total
commitment that one must make toward a
goal and then the complete followthrough that
is necessary to reach that goal.
And after all, isn't that
agriculture and life is all about.
Setting a goal and then going all out for it
WHERE WERE THE CROWDS?
I can’t remember the last time I could walk
up and buy a potato or milkshake at Farm
Show without waiting in line.
Or, walking free and easy from the small to
large arena without just flowing along should
to-shoulder with the crowd.
Livestock exhibitors had a much easier job
of getting entries to and from stalls to the
arenas.
Was it Avian flu? That was probably part of
Was it the weather? The weather really
wasn’t that bad during the majority of the
show.
Well then, what was it? Perhaps, someone
should be asking the question.
WHAT HAPPENED TO FARM FAMILY?
When the Farm Show awards were given out
Monday night, many wondered why there was
no Farm Show Family.
In only it's fifth year of being awarded, the
honor has come to be looked upon as one of
the top honors by those out in the barns.
But this year, the PDA said that not one
application came back in as a nomination for
the honor.
Surely out of the Commonwealth’s 60,000
or so farm families, there are more than four
that can be so honored.
If the awards program is to be continued,
perhaps a quicker and better jump on its
promotion should be launched for the 1985
Farm Show.
Penn Township Fireball.
Wayne County meeting on Milk
Diversion program at 8 p.m. at
the Extension meeting room,
Honesdale Court House.
Tuesday, Jan. 17
Cumberland Co. dairy support
plan meeting at 7:30 p.m. at the
Big Spring High School.
N.J. vegetable meeting in Atlantic
City. Continues through Friday.
(Turn to Rage Al 2)
Qu
what
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I
WHO WILL GO?
January 15,1984
Background Scripture
Isaiah 6.
Devotional Reading:
Isaiah 30:15-18.
It doesn’t happen every day in
our lives, but many of us have
known one or more days in our
lives that are in some way com
parable to Isaiah’s experience in
the temple, as described in Isaiah
6.
FFA,
“No,” you protest, “nothing like
that’s ever happened to me: no
seraphim, no visions of God, no
earthquakes in church, no
disembodied voices.”
HOLY, HOLY, HOLY
Still, although we may not have
experienced exactly what Isaiah
did, although our own experiences
may be less exotic and dramatic,
many of us have known some
“high moments” in our lives when
in some way we have felt the awe
and wonder of God’s presence.
Just as Isaiah’s experience in the
temple was an opportunity for God
to speak to him, so we all have
experiences from time to time
through which God lifts us up and
speaks to us.
As we read Isaiah 6, we see a
progression of experiences for
NOW IS THE TIME V* , Tl
V M
Lancaster County Afncutture Afent
Phone 717 394-6851
To Be Aware of
Child Labor Laws
If you have boys or girls between
the ages of 14 and 16 that plan to
operate a farm tractor or
machinery on a farm, other than
your own farm, be sure they have
the proper certification. Under the
child labor regulations, the law
requires that those boys or girls
between 14 and 16 years of age, be
certified and carry a certification
card before they are permitted to
operate hazardous equipment.
Some equipment listed under the
law as hazardous are, a tractor
with over 20 PTO horsepower, corn
picker, hay baler, feed grinder,
fork lift and many more. Again, on
your own farm, your children can
operate any equipment that you
feel is safe for them.
The certification process in most
areas is through the Vocational
Agricultural Departments in the
school system or through the 4-H
Tractor Clubs. Contact either for
more information.
To Service
Farm Machinery
Isaiah. Isaiah begins with a feeling
of awe and wonder. Perhaps you
never saw. Seraphim flying back
and forth across the sanctuary, but
you likely have experienced
something in life to give you that
same sense of awe and wonder. In
the midst of his ecstacy, Isaiah
heard a Seraphim say, “Holy,
holy, holy is the Lord of hosts.” All
of us from time to time have an
opportur if experience the
holiness of God.
Yet, it is natural that, hav : ".g
experienced this holiness, we move
on to still another emotion: a sense
of unworthiness, “Woe is me!”
said Isaiah, “For I am lost; for I
am a man of unclean lips, and I
dwell in the midst of a people of
unclean lips (6:5). In other words,
when one can say with Isaiah
“...my eyes have seen the King,
the Lord of hosts,” we are struck,
not only with the holiness of God,
but also with our own lowliness.
A BURNING COAL
But the experience doesn’t end
there, leawving us to endlessly
wring our hands in the presence of
the Lord. For, where there is a
recognition of sin and failure, there
is also the opportunity for
redemption. The “burning coal”
that touched Isaiah’s mouth and
consumed his guilt can also touch
and renew us; “Your guilt is taken
away, and your sin forgiven”
(6:7).
There is yet one more step in this
inspiring experience. Following
the pronouncement of Isaiah’s
redemption, there was also a task
for Isaiah to perform, “Whom
shall I send, and who will go for
us?” And the answer God expects
from each of us is the response of
Isaiah: “Here Ami! Send me.”
By Jay Irwin
This is the time of the year to be
preparing your farm equipment
for spring work. In the first place,
this machinery should not be out in
the weather. I still see too much
machinery left out in the fields and
barnyards This is not good
management and will shorten the
life of the equipment Repairing
farm machinery is necessary
every year, and now would be a
good time to make use of the off
season labor supplies. Machinery
is a huge investment and should be
kept in good Condition at all times.
Ram and snow will soon develop
rust on equipment; this will
shorten the life span and is a
primary cause of many un
necessary breakdowns.
I hale to mention it, but it is
Income Tax time again. For
farmers, this becomes quite
complicated and usually there are
many changes from one year to the
next.
The Farmer’s Tax Guide is
published by the Internal Revenue
Service and is a real help to far
mers and others who file for
agricultural concerns. We have a
supply at our Extension Office, as
do other Extension Offices. They
are also available from the In
ternal Revenue Office. I would
highly recommend using the Tax
Guide when filing your return. The
filing date of March 1 for farmers,
rolls around rather quickly.
Dairy cows that are kept in
stanchion or comfort stalls should
have access to a paddock or
exercise lot every day. Regular
exercise is just as important to a
milking cow as it is to a horse or
(Turn to Page Al 2)
To Use Farmer's
Tax Guides
To Exercise
Dairy Cows