Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Wistful Wednesday : Grain Harvest

The small grain harvest is almost completed up here. I watched a combine out in a field on the prairie yesterday. How times have changed. One thing that stays the same is the dust and the irritating chaff.

When I was little the trashing or threshing crew would come through..neighbors helping neighbors. My Mother would bake and cook for days. I remember the excitement of all the equipment pulling into the yard, and the anticipation of all the really good food. The cakes and cookies!! My sweet tooth was ready! The men who helped had to be fed really good, it was hard work.

This is a photograph of my Grandfather D. The photo made me smile, it was taken when I was just a little girl in the 1950's. He is standing on top of the Thrashing/Threshing machine, to the left is the hay wagon piled high with sheaves of grain. To the right must be the grain wagon that would collect the grain after it was thrashed. Grandpa wore the same "Uniform" all his years.. a pair of bib overhauls, a long sleeved shirt, and his cotton cap..the one that looked like a train engineers cap..navy blue and white striped..a red hanky would be in one of his pants pockets..and inside the little pockets in the front of his bibs was a pencil, his cigarette papers, a pouch of tobacco and wooden matches. I always loved to watch him roll his own cigarettes, it was like watching an artist..the paper had to be held just right..then filled with just the right amount of tobacco..then he licked the paper and folded it over..and sometimes he twisted the end that he lit with a wooden matchstick. Grandpa lived well into his nineties:)

16 comments:

DayPhoto said...

I have a book I am reading about your land, called the HAYMAKERS. Everytime I pick it up I think of you. Then today you do a post that fits right into the pages of this book. I would love to send you the book, if you would like it. Then when you are done with it you can give it to your historical society.

Let me know.

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

Rae said...

Living in a rural area, I have fond memories of harvest season. As long as the weather cooperates it is a time to look forward to with everyone getting together to get the crops in. Our farmers are out in the local fields too. The weather has been so dry that we are seeing dust everywhere. It can be a nuisance but I would never give it up to live in a big city.

West Side of Straight said...

Your blog today opens my memory too - watching my dad roll cigarettes!!!! Loved the smell, until they lit them! Then he later changed to Lucky Strikes. Love your old picture.

Jeanne Estridge said...

Reminds me of trips to Kentucky with my grandmother and aunt when I was little.

There's actually a working family farm in my neighborhood, but they planted mostly soybeans this year -- a much neater harvest!

L. D. said...

My dad also had a pair of pliers in his pliers pocket and I can still hear the clinking when he carried metal buckets of feed. The bucket would hit the pliers as it swung back and forth. I had forgotten that. Thanks for the memories.

Michelle said...

That's the same uniform my grandfather wore. Except he had a pipe and pipe tobacco in his front pocket. Did yours carry a pocket watch?

Anonymous said...

I remember the threshing crew coming to Grandpa's too when I was a kid. I wish I had some pictures from way back when.......

lisa said...

I remember, next to my grandparents lived friends of theirs that Uncle Arnold used to roll his cigarettes too. Aunt Helen had the long hair that was always rolled in a bun on the top of her head and she would be doing dishes in the kitchen from a pump!

Emma Rose said...

We saw so many combines on our travels this summer. I told my husband I would love to run one of them sometime. Talk about sitting on top of the world! Those things are enormous! Really enjoyed your post.

Emma sends kisse for Chance :)
The Duchess

That Janie Girl said...

I love your pictures.

Teresa @ Grammy Girlfriend said...

Loved looking at all your pictures....

So GLAD to find your blog....I enjoyed my stop tonight. There are so many new and fun blogs that I am finding everyday. Hope you will stop by and see my new Christmas blog... http://grammyababychangeseverything.blogspot.com
There is a GREAT giveaway going on now for a Great Ornament Giveaway on Oct 1....all you have to do is leave a comment.....I love finding new blogs and make new blog friends.

Anonymous said...

Great photos. All that hard work and fresh air must have counteracted against the effects of smoking...

Anonymous said...

What a great photo and memories. I enjoyed this very much Connie.

Nezzy (Cow Patty Surprise) said...

In a few weeks we will be harvesting our soybeans. Thank the Lord for modern machinery and farm hands(I call them our strongbacks).

Thank you so much for poppin' by and leaving your sweet, sweet birthday wish. Ya'll enjoy your day!!!

RURAL said...

Although my Sister and I never got the chance to grow up on a farm, quite a few of my Aunt's, and Uncle's were farmers. Even if we weren't there for harvest time, it permiated our conversations.

Thanks for posting such great memories, I enjoyed the trip back.

Jen

Lanny said...

My mother had stories of the threshers and helping her mother cook for them. I really enjoyed this post and the photos.