The Underdog

I love Texas Country music (some folks call it Red Dirt music). I’ve loved it since I was in college; Musicians like Pat Green, Robert Earl Keen, Cross Canadian Ragweed, and the Randy Rogers Band have always filled my cd case and iTunes.

I really like Aaron Watson. He lives in Abilene, TX, which is about 45 minutes from where I grew up. He’s a Christian and a family man. Listening to his music is like a trip home. His latest album recently topped the Country music charts, but he gets virtually no play time on country radio (not that I listen to country radio, anyway). The irony of that fact is compounded in the name of the album, the Underdog. 

After I downloaded it, my productivity dropped because  I was dancing and beating my hands on my desk. :)

Several of my blogging buddies have decided to write a group blog with the Underdog theme. Honestly, as much as I love Aaron Watson, I wasn’t sure I was going to participate. I didn’t know how I would tie this theme into my blog about meat and the meat industry.

Then, this morning I was listening to National Public Radio (see, not country). A young woman who was having a hard time financially was being asked about her health. She was convinced that her health was failing because she could not afford to buy food at the farmers market.  It hit me.

She was my underdog.

I don’t know her story, and I doubt she’s heard of me, but I write my blog for all the underdogs like her.

Families all over this country are told that expensive, Organic, Natural foods are better and healthier for them.  When they can’t afford them, imagine the guilt they must feel when they buy and feed their families conventionally-raised foods without the fancy, Organic, grass-fed, or Natural labels.

Even if what I write helps just a few of these folks feel better about what they feed their families, then I’m happy and it’s been worth it.

• I want to assure the young, single moms working for minimum wage that processed meats are a great way to get kids to eat protein when that’s all the protein they can afford.
• I want the busy, soccer mom to know its ok to run through the drive through between soccer practice and music lessons. The food will be safe.
• I want the label-reading-obsessed dad know what nitrites are, why they are used, and that they are safe and helpful.
• I want the concerned grandma to know that all meat is free of antibiotics regardless of what’s on the label.
• I want the mom with the newborn to know that no pork and poultry is raised with steroid hormones, and she can enjoy it worry-free.
• I want everyone to understand the importance of food safety and meat thermometers.

Unfortunately, we live in a society full of judging and Mom guilt. Feeling guilty and judged sure makes you feel like an Underdog. When they can’t afford the food that everyone says they should feed their kids, or they’re too busy to get it prepared, or they just don’t understand all the hype, I hope my blog helps them to feel a little more confident about the decisions they make to feed their families.

I've always been one to root for the Underdog.



Other Underdog posts:

Dirt Road Charm

Dairy Carrie

Heim Dairy

Rural Gone Urban

Farming America