Pharmacy Daily | More lessons from the lychee farm

QUEENSLAND-BASED pharmacist owner and lychee farmer Roy Packer shares more thoughts on the parallels between agricultural practices and pharmacy.

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Things break down when we stop listening - when we rush ahead chasing goals and ticking off tasks, but miss the quiet warning signs that something needs attention.

My staff had a good laugh when I shared a photo of our tractor swallowing me up under the bonnet - oil and diesel all over my clothes.

"I make mistakes too," I said, a bit sheepishly.

I was determined to finish hedging our lychee trees after wet weather and work delays.

Focused on the finish line, I ignored that little warning light on the dashboard and charged ahead, certain I'd get it done.

The jerry can was sitting right there, ready to go - but I didn't take the moment to stop and refuel, and soon it was out of my mind.

Four trees short of the end, on a hill, the tractor came to a dead stop.

Immediately I remembered the warning light - the empty tank.

I sighed, embarrassed, knowing what was ahead.

After wasted time letting it cool down, I crawled beneath the bonnet, bled the lines, and brought the beast back to life.

I was covered in diesel but thankful to be moving forward once more, finishing the trees and concluding the last of my farm chores for the week.

I can't blame others for not filling the tank, just myself.

While my staff laughed (and I deserved it), I saw a deeper lesson in it.

In the busyness of life and work, we can miss the small signs that tell us to slow down and tend to what really matters.

We get caught up in finishing the task, instead of pausing to realign with what's important in the moment.

Every now and then, we all need a bit of a "bleeding of the lines" - a restart, a reset, a reminder to keep a closer eye on the gauges that really matter.

Roy Packer introduced Pharmacy Daily readers to his lychee farm earlier this year (PD 19 Jan).