Dear Dad...Don Eduardo
Jade Buchholz is a dairy science major at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is from Westfield, Wisconsin. Jade chose to write a letter to her father, accompanied by a poem she wrote, about one of the farm visits in Mexico.
August 21, 2009
Dear Dad,
Today we visited a small dairy farm near the town of Aculco. The dairy farmer's name was Don Eduardo and he was a really hard-working guy. He said he was 47 years old. In total he has 65 head of cattle, 11 of his cows were lactating when we visited. He explained his daily chore routine and even showed us his method of cutting his pastures.
He said he's never had formal education but he really knew a lot about dairy farming. His farm is currently using Brown Swiss cross-breeding programs that are performed via artificial insemination. Don Eduardo mentioned he has some interest in incorporating Jersey semen into his herd as well. I decided to write a little poem about his operation for you to read. I hope you enjoy it!
"I didn't get a chance for education but I like what I do," says the middle-aged man from Aculco.
Every morning he wakes up to milk his 11 cows by hand,
He later heads to the pastures for he owns five hectares of land.
Careful not to harm himself, he mows down the rows of grass,
Humming to himself, he realizes two hours have already passed.
He loads up the forage because the cows are ready to eat,
Just another task to him but in my eyes quite a large feat!
He has no education but he's certainly no fool,
He knows machine are faster but prefers calloused hands and a milking stool.
The techniques for greener pastures--he knows them in and out!
When it comes to the dry season, he prays for rain but assumes a drought.
He works beside his father, who has 40 years more than him,
Don Eduardo says he'll work for 20 more years before his light begins to dim.
--Jade Buchholz
Dear Dad,
Today we visited a small dairy farm near the town of Aculco. The dairy farmer's name was Don Eduardo and he was a really hard-working guy. He said he was 47 years old. In total he has 65 head of cattle, 11 of his cows were lactating when we visited. He explained his daily chore routine and even showed us his method of cutting his pastures.
He said he's never had formal education but he really knew a lot about dairy farming. His farm is currently using Brown Swiss cross-breeding programs that are performed via artificial insemination. Don Eduardo mentioned he has some interest in incorporating Jersey semen into his herd as well. I decided to write a little poem about his operation for you to read. I hope you enjoy it!
Don Eduardo
"I didn't get a chance for education but I like what I do," says the middle-aged man from Aculco.
Every morning he wakes up to milk his 11 cows by hand,
He later heads to the pastures for he owns five hectares of land.
Careful not to harm himself, he mows down the rows of grass,
Humming to himself, he realizes two hours have already passed.
He loads up the forage because the cows are ready to eat,
Just another task to him but in my eyes quite a large feat!
He has no education but he's certainly no fool,
He knows machine are faster but prefers calloused hands and a milking stool.
The techniques for greener pastures--he knows them in and out!
When it comes to the dry season, he prays for rain but assumes a drought.
He works beside his father, who has 40 years more than him,
Don Eduardo says he'll work for 20 more years before his light begins to dim.
--Jade Buchholz