Sheep | Moses Lake, WA | August 2019
The mainstay of American values isn’t a Trump rally or Independence Day celebration. It’s the county fair. That’s where an extraordinary mix of people — farmers, housewives, entrepreneurs, artists, performers — put their passions on display. They unabashedly exclaim: Here’s the prettiest flower I’ve grown, the tastiest cookies I’ve baked, the best LEGO model I’ve made. The 4-H kids with animals are the most intense. Their critters must meet not only present-day standards of health and hygiene, but also follow two centuries of traditional farming practices. This is how you groom a horse, shear a sheep, steer a hog to market. You can see the pride in kids’ faces: “This is what my granddad did. This is what my parents do. This could very well be my future.”
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