Something’s changed out here lately

A letter from the farm – March 2026.

Hi there,

How are you? How are you managing with the fuel challenges? It is definitely not something I had seen coming! World politics do not pique my interest enough to have recognised the signs or foreseen the consequences.

In saying that - like with everything, living through the experience and feeling the changes that are now our reality will help me grow. I’ll take the challenges and bank them in my ‘wisdom from experience’ pile. I’m sure that next time I will have a better understanding about how quickly things can change.

Has the price of fuel had much of an impact for you? I really am curious to know.

The reason I write my letter each month is to share our lifestyle, the perspectives we see and why. Maybe my voice is not one that you would otherwise hear. Not everyone has that country cousin any more, or the old school friend that brings their own water with them to visit because they can’t adjust to the flavour of ‘town water’.

(True story by the way, I remember years ago having a rare visit from family friends at home in Sydney that brought with them a huge esky full of their own rain water! I imagine that the trip to Sydney was far enough out of their comfort zone that bringing water from the farm was worth the effort! I also remember Mum assuring them that there was nothing wrong with the taste of Sydney water.)

For us on the farm we are feeling the increase in fuel prices in lots of ways. We are sowing our winter crops which require diesel and we did not forecast the increase in fuel cost in our budgeting. The increased risk of inflation and therefore interest rates is another cost to our business and we are aware more changes may come simply from transport costs. I think that nearly everything we want/have/need/eat comes to us on the back of a truck.

As a young family we are lucky enough to have NSW’s largest inland city of Wagga Wagga just over 30kms away. With that we have opportunities for our children to play sport, learn music and challenge themselves in almost any direction they choose. It is not unusual for me to drive 1000kms/week between work and family life. I feel the change in fuel prices in my back pocket and have found ways to reduce our family costs and still live the life that is important to me. I imagine you are the same?

It never fails to amaze me how we can make changes when we need to. I have learnt that the golden recipe for change is that our current reality must be more uncomfortable that the effort involved to change. It’s true, isn’t it? We need a good reason to change.

When the war started a few weeks ago, I heard an industry spokes person on the radio talking about the fuel situation. They made a comment suggesting farmers could delay sowing their crops for 3-4 weeks until there was more clarity on fuel availability. That comment blew me away. So many emotions ran through my mind and I could not believe the disconnect that informed that comment.

I know that we are influenced by our environment, our education and so many other elements. I love that we all see the world slightly differently and I believe that the comment I heard was not intended to that such an emotional response. I also know that some people listening to the radio that morning like myself my have felt those words bite a little harder.

So many of our community are sowing their crops as I write to you. They have enterprises much larger than ours and many more zero’s on the end of their fuel invoices. They are multi-million dollar operations that consistently transform key decision making principles into successful outcomes. Successful outcomes that allow us to meet our most basic and essential needs – food.

I know that that comments of an industry spokesperson does not respect the value placed on key decisions. I know that there are times where conversations in the city feel like they have none of my team mates being heard. But, I also know that we farm for a reason and move ahead anyway. Just like the open air casino which is farming, we adapt to the changes. We know why we do what we do and it is important for us to do it well.

If you are feeling the pain from what is happening now, just remember what Friedrich Nietzsche believes. “He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.”

To finish I will really quickly throw my paintbrush across the paper and let you see what I see on the farm in March. Sunrise and sunsets that light up both sides of the sky – pastel yellows/oranges or glowing reds with the sun and at the same time pale pink blending to blue on the opposite horizon. Beautiful rain and warm days with grass now reaching the top of my boots in paddocks not grazed. Fire bin, marshmallows and family evenings together.

Please let me know how the changes in fuel is impacting you. You may have a perspective I would not otherwise hear.

Until my next letter,

Sending my love from the farm, Em.