I haven’t always lived on a farm, but after marrying a farmer I can’t imagine living anywhere but our farm.  My name is Deb Gangwish.  Until the age of nine I lived in Lincoln, Nebraska.  One of the best gifts I have received was to turn 10 on an old farm acreage my parents bought that summer.  It was there, with the original farm house, squeaky windmill, red barns, brooder house and hen house that I fell in love with agriculture and Mother Nature.  Today, my husband and I live on a farm near Shelton, Nebraska where we grow corn and soybean and raise cattle.  Raising our five children on our farm has taught them the lasting core values of hard work, caring and perseverance.  And today, our kids’ lives are shaping up to be living proof of those values.  Farm life continues to bring with it hard, dirty, long hours, no matter the elements outside or the time of day.  But I wouldn’t trade it.  Something inside folks changes for the better when you are needed by something bigger than yourself.  Folks in agriculture learn this from the moment they are born. I learned it at 10 years of age. “Work before play.” It’s how we live.