Lincoln has been the dairy herdsman at TWCF for the past 30 years, since the farm began. Right now he is in the process of retiring from that job and handing over the reins to Andrew; he is working on starting his own educational farm just up the road. This morning I was walking through the barn while he was milking and when I greeted him and asked how he was, this is what he said: "I'm pretty good. Better. Better every time I milk."
At a conservative estimate, he has surely done the milking routine 10,000 times. And every time still feeling the joy and satisfaction that comes from doing something you truly love. Watching him with the cows is slightly awe-inspiring, seeing how much knowledge and experience he has.
People look at it for a minute and say it's magical, but I think if you really look closely you can see the decades of plain old hard work. The dedication it takes to obtain such a vast wealth of knowledge is only made possible by approaching each day anew, with the view that every time you do something does, indeed, make you better. Better in the task itself, better in forming habits of diligence, better in yourself as the person you want to become.
It seems like a bit of a lost art nowadays, for your whole life to be a mire of work and perseverance towards one goal. The prickle of hay in your hands and the smack of cow hide beneath your palm are all but forgotten in so many places. But there are still those who are drawn back to it, who feel something hallowed in these everyday occurrences that elevate them to instances of perfection.
And then those people, having once found that perfection, can never quite step away from it. Always coming back to the experience again and again, and continuing to learn that it is better every time.
At a conservative estimate, he has surely done the milking routine 10,000 times. And every time still feeling the joy and satisfaction that comes from doing something you truly love. Watching him with the cows is slightly awe-inspiring, seeing how much knowledge and experience he has.
People look at it for a minute and say it's magical, but I think if you really look closely you can see the decades of plain old hard work. The dedication it takes to obtain such a vast wealth of knowledge is only made possible by approaching each day anew, with the view that every time you do something does, indeed, make you better. Better in the task itself, better in forming habits of diligence, better in yourself as the person you want to become.
It seems like a bit of a lost art nowadays, for your whole life to be a mire of work and perseverance towards one goal. The prickle of hay in your hands and the smack of cow hide beneath your palm are all but forgotten in so many places. But there are still those who are drawn back to it, who feel something hallowed in these everyday occurrences that elevate them to instances of perfection.
And then those people, having once found that perfection, can never quite step away from it. Always coming back to the experience again and again, and continuing to learn that it is better every time.