A Day in my Life during Natto Soybean Harvest
You hear that? I do. It is the sound of semi truck engines as they roll onto our granary lot delivering Delta Soy natto soybeans. Most of the 2024 harvest is complete: Corn, rice and commercial soybeans are closing down to the end. This is the week or two we have been preparing for since early August. The air is becoming crisp and the sun is setting earlier and earlier. I get excited as we gear up for the rush. Bring it ON!
These days are long and very busy but we love it. My days look different during this time of year than any other. It is a time when I thrive because I love the fast pace, visiting with farmers and truck drivers I may only see during harvest. Some days it is difficult to not be overwhelmed but being present with everything that is going on is satisfying. What does my day look like? Here we go!
My day starts EARLY!
4:45 AM - Alarm goes off and my feet MUST hit the floor. My ritual of morning devotional and exercise are extremely important to me and to setting my day up for success. During natto soybean harvest I have to abbreviate some items to make it to he granary before 7:00 AM. I get up and get dressed to sit quietly for 10-20 minutes as I review my obligations for the day and read something. A short devotional or maybe a few pages of a book. Then it is out to the shop gym for a 30-40 minute workout. Could be walking or resistance training or stretching. Then I brew a strong cup of coffee and hit the shower! I pack my breakfast and lunch for the day and I am out the door.
7:00 AM - Opening time!! We start sampling soybeans at 7:00 AM and begin the work of grading the loads for unloading. We have very stringent quality requirements for our soybeans. The sampling and grading takes longer than for commercial soybeans. The sample room is like a dance floor with those of us doing the different tests flowing together like a well choreographed dance. One misstep and soybeans could be all over the floor! But seriously, it can be a very long day if we have truck after truck rolling in or it can be the slowest ever waiting on just a few. But customer service is important and we want to get the trucks in and out as fast as possible.
From sunup to sundown and then some
Opening time at 7:00 AM to closing time at 7:00 PM makes room for tons of work to be accomplished. From grading soybeans, talking to farmers, directing our staff inside and at the bins there are way too many decisions that must be made during the day. We use color coded and easy to remember methods and protocols to help with the flow of testing each truck and also the flow of traffic on our lot. Even on our busier days it all usually flows very well.
Trucks lined up waiting to be sampled and unloaded
7:00 PM Close but Not Finished Yet
Even though we close our doors to sampling at 7:00 pm it may take an hour or more to unload all of the trucks. During this time of day things get quieter and the sun has set. I take some time to clear my head and prepare for the next day. Reviewing the grain bin automated system to make sure the settings are properly programmed is important before leaving for the day. In fact, I review this multiple times per day when we are busy.
Work Day Shut Down
A practice I learned from the Full Focus Community is called the work day shutdown. If I miss this time during natto harvest the next day can be a wreck. So spending 10-15 minutes to wrap up my day can be beneficial to my mental status for the next morning. Taking notes on priorities for the next day makes the transition to being at home much easier. I can leave those tasks and thoughts at work and not bring them home. Most importantly NOT wake up at 2 AM with my head racing about things to do!
Night Night!
Then it is home for a quick supper and to bed as early as I can make it happen. 4:45 will come soon especially after a week, or two, or maybe three of the same schedule every day. Gotta take in Natto while the sun shines!