Won't Back Down

“It wasn’t easy, but we did it.” A quote from a conversation with my grandpa about the ’80s. He and my grandmother did the seemingly impossible by keeping the family farm afloat and sending three kids through college. Others weren't that lucky. The “Farm Crisis”, as many refer to it, struck families all over. It collapsed strong agriculture companies, forced the hands of local banks, and attacked family farms alike, the crisis took no prisoners leaving some feeling powerless.

February 5, 1979—Thousands of economically struggling farmers arrive in Washington D.C. to draw public attention to rising farm debt and unfair federal ag policies. (Photo: USDA / National Archives and Records Administration / Iowa Public Radio)

Regardless if you come from a family whose farm survived the ‘80s or not, we all have our demons. For some of us, it’s a small business that’s floundering, a loved one’s illness or struggling to get out of bed in the morning, we all have a crisis we face. People face challenges monthly, weekly, daily if not hourly, but yet they hold on. They refuse to quit. Sometimes I am fortunate enough to hear of someone’s fight and their victories. Someone’s small victory can be the thing we need to keep going.

I was recently facing adversity with different aspects of my life. Things, as I perceived them, were spiraling out of control and there was nothing I could do. I had no grasp and no answer to what was going on around me. I called home one night I was pretty down and vented to my mom about what was going on. Post our conversation, I was laying in bed processing everything we had talked about while trying to go to sleep. I put in my headphones, closed my eyes and let a playlist distract my troubled mind. As I started to drift off, a song began to play:

No, I'll stand my ground

Won't be turned around

And I'll keep this world from draggin' me down

Gonna stand my ground

And I won't back down 

Tom Petty made me feel like I could run through a brick wall! Yeah, times were grim but even amidst all the chaos, I realized I was still standing. I hadn't given up.

I don’t know where you are or what you’re going through. I do know that you are reading this and that means you have a chance. A chance to overcome, a chance to survive, a chance to stand your ground. It’s no mystery the world is a tough place, life isn’t going to give you a fair shake and as soon as one storm ends, others brew. We don’t get to control those aspects of life, no matter how hard we try. We do get to control how we respond. Like those during the Farm Crisis, we can fight and we can win. Don't be afraid to be brave and say: “I Won’t Back Down!”

Let’s Go Get Em,

Chandler Jahner

State President