It sounded like an American dream that was supposed to fit seamlessly into the romantic biography of a country superstar: Carrie Underwood, 42, a child of a small town in Oklahoma, moves with her husband Mike Fisher and their two sons to the countryside in Tennessee. 400 acres - that is more than enough space for horses, sheep, chickens, fruit trees, greenhouses, and gardens that practically write every PR feature about “the simple life” by themselves. But behind the scenes of the glossy pictures that feed fans with well-placed sunsets, reality is simmering - and it smells of hay, sweat, and a shortage of labor. For months, the declared Trump supporter has been desperately looking for farmhands. Apparently, the days are over when the rural labor market was automatically filled with cheap, mostly migrant labor. A paradoxical situation: those who once loudly shouted “America First” are now finding that “America” is not standing in the barn at five in the morning to feed the horses.
According to insiders, Underwood now shovels hay herself, weeds, fertilizes, harvests - and constantly repairs everything that is always breaking on a farm. Her day begins at dawn and often does not end until late at night. Sleep? Not happening. Free time? A myth that dissolves between pasture fences and greenhouse.
The irony of the story is as big as her land: those who support political programs that dry up the reservoir of agricultural labor should not be surprised when the idyll mutates into a nightmare. And so, once again, it becomes clear that ideology and everyday life do not always harmonize - especially not when hundreds of animals have to be fed on time.
Maybe Carrie Underwood will write a song about it someday. Working title: “Before He Cheats, After He Leaves - and me alone with the pitchfork.” Until then, it remains the sober realization that patriotic slogans do not groom horses.
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Wie gewählt, so geliefert.
Absolut kein Mitleid.
Hoffentlich bekommt sie all die gesundheitlichen Probleme, die ihre Farmarbeiter „klaglos“ hingenommen haben, weil sie undokumentiert und damit ohne Krankenversicherung waren.
Kaputter Rücken, kaputt Knie …. darüber lässt sich bestimmt auch ein Countrysong schreiben.
…wir haben uns köstlich amüsiert