It’s the celebration of Independence Day in America today. On this day I am doing just what many of the settlers of the United States were doing 232 years ago as our forefathers ratified the Declaration of Independence: I am working on the farm. I awoke at 3:45 so I could eat, get ready, and be in the field as the sun rose. I feel fortunate for this experience of working on a farm as I now know what effort must be put forward for our food. I more than ever appreciate the work of migrants who toil our earth so we may have access to inexpensive food on our tables and in our restaurants. As summer encroaches and crops hang on the precipice of heat-induced failure, I will think of what our ancestors endured in order to establish a foothold and create new communities. Today as I labor to bring this food to others, I will be thankful for all of the hard work both physical and intellectual that goes into making a country prosperous, free, and happy.