Growing up, I was a child of the Fine Arts before I was a child of Agriculture. I took piano lessons, participated in art workshops, and even dabbled in a bit of dance. But we don’t talk about the dance thing; Let’s just say it didn’t work out. However, one of my favorite summer activities was participating in Theatre Camp at my community’s performing arts center. 

One of the most memorable moments I had at Theatre Camp was when I played the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz. During the opening night of the show, I was on stage ready to start my very first scene. Dorothy and Toto prance across the yellow brick road over to the centerstage cornfield. There I was, standing on center stage in silence with a thousand eyeballs focused on me; I had forgotten my line. I did not know what to do. I began to panic and could feel myself starting to sweat, but soon before I knew it, my friend playing Dorthy knew exactly how to help me out━the show must go on!

My Theatre Camp experiences often remind me of the roles we play as FFA members. In our organization, we all play a key role on the agricultural stage. Regardless of our connection to the agriculture industry, we all have the opportunity to use our unique roles to produce the story of agriculture. Even though we cannot be involved in all aspects of agriculture, we as FFA members can build relationships with each other, so we can have connections to the diverse cast of agriculturalists. Whether you participate in agriscience research, raise livestock, grow crops or even work at a local restaurant, your role in agriculture matters. Step out onto the agriculture stage and let your story be in the limelight.