Cash Trickle Planning

In all three of the farm-related meetings I’ve attended so far this winter, there has been a significant amount of time spent telling us to get our records in good shape, make realistic projections — and get ready to meet with our bankers to do cash trickle planning. Good luck to you, I hope you own cows.


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I went to see my banker
After adding up my slips.
It wasn't quite as fun
As it had been some other trips.

With more commas in the numbers
Last year at this time,
And not so much subtracting
To find out what was mine.

I’d been to see my tax man.
He said, “That can’t be right.
There must be some income checks
That slipped out of your sight.”

“And did you really spend that much
On gas and tools and stuff?
Really, how much glyphosate
Seems to be enough?”

After he had slapped me down
With pen and yellow pad,
Well, going to the bank would take
All the guts I had.

My banker offered me a seat
And handshake that seemed warm,
Then spooled up his computer
And fired up his charm.

He made a little small talk
About the kids and more,
Then quietly stepped over
And tightly shut the door.

He copied all my numbers
To his electron page
While making little grunting sounds
That I just couldn’t gauge.

He sat there staring at the screen,
Left thumb upon his chin,
Then jumps to move his cursor,
Types some other number in.

It got deathly quiet
In that banker glass wall crypt.
His pen, it scratched like thunder
As he laid down some script.

He picked up all the papers
And stacked them like a deck.
I felt just one small bead of sweat
Trickle down my neck.

Then the thing he told me next
Almost made me sob:
“The bank is sticking with you,
But keep your writing job.”

David Kragnes farms near Felton, Minn. A former board member and chairman of American Crystal Sugar Co., he currently serves on the CoBank Board of Directors.

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