Australia has long been regarded as The Lucky Country – a land of opportunities and a fair-go for all. The reality is we aren’t immune to all sorts of adversities, hardships, issues and problems like the rest of the world.
At the time of facing an uncertainty, I often experience a mild form of anxiety. It’s just part of the package called life. Perhaps it’s my fighting spirit or my survival instinct, I don’t allow myself to go astray. When I’m trying to re-group myself, two questions I ask myself are:
- Who’s got the most unrelenting quality to deal with unpredictability in life? And
- Who can I draw an inspiration from to help me get through the rough patch?
Well, we all need to eat, don’t we?! Perhaps diving into where food comes from is a good way to start. This is how the story goes…
One Saturday morning when I was sorting out my groceries, I was very much captivated by the colourful fruit and veggies – blue berries, strawberries, apples, grapes, cherry tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers, broccoli, yellow squash, you name it. Nothing brightens up my weekend like the fresh produce.
As I put them away in the fridge, I started to think of those hard-working people behind the scenes – growers I’ve never met.
To me, the abundance of food is always within easy reach, readily available at supermarkets. Whatever we need, just put them in trolley, go to a checkout counter and pay, then the job is done. Whereas, to growers, their crop is at the mercy of weather conditions every day of the year. Too much rain, too little rain or no rain at all can throw their livelihood into disarray.
What do they do when the weather turns ugly? What do they do when the drought hits? What do they do when the crop is ruined by an unforeseen calamity?
Do they grin and bear it, get back up and try again? Or do they just say “tough”, “why me?” and give up?
What do growers do to stay resilient, viable and competitive?
You bet! They’ve given me plenty of food for thought…
Ted Tsai 