Skip to main content

Merry Christmas!

Christmas has finally arrived here at VG Farms. It is finally white and actually looks like Christmas. Before I go on, let me issue an apology for the lack of blog posts these past few weeks. Between my end-of-semester finals and my father’s busy work-load, it has been difficult to find the time to write. So consider this special Christmas edition a gift from us to you.



As any family does, the Van Gilst’s hold several Christmas traditions. Some are small and informal – like watching National Lampoons Christmas Vacation at least a half dozen times. Others are a bit more significant – such as gathering with each side of the family (Van Gilst and Branderhorst) to celebrate the holidays alongside grandparents, aunts and uncles, and an endless supply of cousins. We watch the Iowa Hawkeyes play in their bowl game (fingers crossed for a victory in a few days) and occasionally us boys will head off to Iowa City to catch some hoops. Whatever it may be, there is never a dull moment over the holidays.



Work on the farm doesn’t stop, but it does change. Usual work schedules are adjusted to leave employees free to be with their families on Christmas eve and day. We think this is incredibly important despite the crammed days it creates. I guess it helps that I come home and help with all the vital tasks, including power washing. A few employees are willing to come in during the holidays and pull their weight – it may be Christmas, but pigs still need to eat. Perhaps these men will receive some Christmas cookies as a token of our appreciation.


At the heart of all the Christmas shenanigans that occur, we try to remind ourselves of why we celebrate. We place a single black ornament on our nearly all white Christmas tree to remind us that we are sinful. It reminds us that Christ had to come to earth to redeem us from our broken state and provide true salvation. It is something that is truly worth celebrating – it what gives hope to all of mankind. In the midst of all your holiday traditions, we hope you remember this message too.


Well, I’d love to stay and tell you stories of past Christmas’s that involved a lot more snow, but my dad is honking the car horn (we’re going to another family gathering). So I’ll quit writing and wish you all a Merry Christmas on behalf of VG Farms and the Van Gilst family. 

- VG Farms 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Backing Away from Basics

How many times have you said to yourself or to others that there is a need to get back to basics? A return to the basics can help us realign with the fundamental principles of the task at hand. It’s generally very helpful. When I was struggling in a sport, I often backtracked to the fundamentals to discovered my point of error. Other’s use it in work, family life, and in cooking. Unfortunately, I believe that we have remained a bit too basic in our approach to pork. Go to a retail store and you will see the same cuts that have been available for the past 30 years. You will see chops, shoulder and loin roasts, tenderloins, ham steaks, etc. Now there is nothing wrong with those cuts as they present a myriad of cooking opportunities. But the wonderful pig produces so much more! Take for example some of the dishes we served this week at a pork education event. We made street tacos out of pork steaks (it’s the Spinalis muscle if you want to get technical). We made Chulet
1 comment
Read more

Can you power wash?

              Can you power wash? It may seem odd, but this is often one of the first questions I ask someone interviewing for a job with us. There are generally two reasons for asking this question. The first is practical in nature. Pigs can kind of be like your kids sometimes, leaving a mess where ever they go.            This makes power washing a frequent event especially in the farrowing house. Grant does a good job of making sure the next mom has a clean place to have her babies.             The second reason is it may give you an idea of the persons work ethic. If they hesitate or try to appear that they are “over qualified” to power wash that may be a red flag. All jobs here are important, whether you are in charge of the books or cleaning farrowing pens, what you are doing is vital to the success of the farm.             Last week I talked about getting projects done. We took advantage of the Labor day weekend to get one of those projects done. The white stripes went
Post a Comment
Read more