It seems intriguing, to be assisted in your life. Not that it hasn’t happened to myself for most of my life. After all, there are so many things, necessary things, that I just cannot do alone. I cannot cut my hair (well, I could but I would not be presentable till it grew out again) How about waking me up when I am snoring, It isn’t good to keep snoring as your oxygen levels go down a bit. An elbow at 3am will do just fine.

Lawn mowing, stacking hay bales in the barn, fixing the cantankerous old tractor. A lot of things I could do but would rather not as I am not as good at it as my family is. They are younger and more fit and quite talented enough to do those things. I did similar things for over half of my life and now it is good that the farm has great family to do those things. There are many such ‘chores’ that I still do but, many of them require the ability to press 60 lb or more. Repeatedly. I have family around the place and it is such a blessing to me. The way it was meant to be. Maple syrup time is a teamwork affair. I get the firewood and help cook. Teamwork with coffee made from maple sap that exceeds any coffee ever drunk before. Perfect around the steam of the cooker.

I muse on times less than a century ago. The family homestead with the original founders relaxing at times in the swing on the porch or the bench in the middle of the garden. A lot of mental pictures as well as the ones on the walls come to mind with those images. My early childhood, pulling weeds in Grandma’s garden and things like that. Family farms are a blessing.

Now big farms have GPS tractors and such huge machinery which cannot be maintained easily by an older man. That sort of life is more demanding and labor intensive than the usual farm. Those big farms are almost exclusively crop farms. Corn, soybeans and occasionally sunflowers.

Small farms are now called ‘hobby farms’. To have your own grown food. Wheat and hay along with big gardens. However, being able to pay the taxes and usual life expenses usually requires an outside job. Of course, an on site business is ideal for that money. The only drawback is someone who shows up with a broken something Sunday Morning! A something that is a pivotal part of that customer’s life.

Cars, trucks, tractors or appliances,plumbing and things of that sort. Usually a neighbor is ready to help when needed in other areas. A bit awkward for timing at times but it pays the bills that show up down the driveway at the big mailbox. Our neighbors are good friends, as it should be. We fix the combine and he plants the wheat.

Eggs, raspberries, tomatoes, snow peas and such are grown in quantities to store and share. A beef steer in the horse pasture looks pretty good too.

The kids Grandfather is hundreds of miles away and lives in a assisted living facility. It’s hard to visit and it’s hard to see so many older people just hungry for family, friends and a front porch with a swing. A bit of knitting for Grandma and advice from Grandpa on various things. Sometimes he is right and with a chuckle he knows he is perhaps out of his league with computers and cell phones. It’s a life that is good. The family Bible gets read a lot and it tells everyone how to live well. They pray a lot too. It’s pretty good. Jack Gator