Introduction I am concerned about rural America and its future as the country stumbles its way into the twenty- first century, injured by the COVID pandemic and unsure of itself and where it wants to head. Historically, rural communities have been the heart of this country. They continue to be essential. For the country to move forward into the twenty-first century, it must have vibrant rural communities. Agriculture has been and remains for many rural communities its core activity. One of the most critical problems facing rural America these days is what has happened and is happening to agriculture. To put it bluntly, agriculture has lost its way. It has fallen into the trap of following the tenets of industrialization--bigger is better.

Inputs and outputs. Money is more important than caring for the environment. As I discuss the future of agriculture, I also discuss the future of rural villages and small cities. For many decades they have had a close relationship with each other. Indeed, they depended on each other. Today much of that interdependent relationship has been lost. Many rural villages and cities are struggling mightily to merely survive, to say nothing about thriving. I will discuss ways in which a new agriculture can once more become the vital force it once was.

Even more fundamentally, I will examine the need for all of us, rural and urban alike, to develop an appreciation for the land. Land is much more than dirt. How true it is; in some depth I will examine why we must and how we can return to a reverence for the land--no matter where we live. I will draw on the writings of Aldo Leopold, Wendell Berry, and several native American writers who help us understand the need to look at land as a resource necessary to protect and care for--for the sake of the planet's future and for those creatures, including humans who call it home.