I’m sure many of you have heard about the new proposed legislation to limit the opportunities youth will have to work in an agricultural setting, even their own family’s farm.

As someone who spent many hours moving irrigation pipe, on the seat of a tractor cutting hay or moving bales, fixing fences, on horseback pushing cows or many other tasks associated with farming or ranching, I can fully attest to the fact that the things I learned were invaluable. While I may not necessarily be doing any of those tasks directly today, the work ethic and appreciation for rural agriculture and what it provides for all of us is something I will always treasure. They are life lessons that I don’t think I could have learned any other way.

I watch my own children today and worry about what they are missing out on. They have to help pull weeds in the garden and mow the lawn in the summer and do a few chores around the house. A couple of them have had the opportunity to be involved in 4-H and show pigs at the fair. But other than that, what ways do I have to teach them responsibility and how to work hard? How will they make the connect between where their food comes from and the hard-working farm families across the nation?

We would be doing our country and our kids a disservice to take away the opportunity to have the kinds of experiences they can get in a rural agricultural environment working on the farm. Yes, safety is important, but there are all kinds of dangers out there for our children. Let’s just be smart about how we go about protecting them.

If you have similar thoughts and feelings, visit a new website: Keep Families Farming to share your comments.