When we bought the farm we have now, one of the first things I noticed was the pile of stones (see above) that stretched for 50 yards or so along the west side of the buildings, just inside of the willow windbreak.
This old moss-covered stone pile has a story to tell. The Coombes family, who owned our farm before us, never owned a tractor, so all of these stones were picked by hand, rolled onto a stone boat, and them with a team of horses toted to this place where they remain, and will likely remain as I have no intention of moving them. This old stone pile represents a lot of hard work.
I grew up picking stones as the home farm, which is some two miles from the farm we now own. Like the Coombes farm, the home place was on the terminal moraine—where the last glacier stopped. Upon melting, the glacier left behind a landscape studded with stones. Stones as large as a small car. Stones as small as marbles. Black stones and red stones. Round stones and jagged stones. With winter’s frosts the stones came to the surface each year. And each spring, we picked them, loaded them on a stone boat pulled by our trusty team of horses. We hauled them to stone piles scattered across our farm. My dad would often say, as we picked stones: “If nothing else grows on this farm, we can always count on a good crop of stones.”
THE OLD-TIMER SAYS: Want to build some character: spend a day picking stones.
.
ANNOUNCEMENT: My “Telling Your Story” Writing Class at The Clearing in Door County is set for July 19, 9-4. Call 920-854-4880 if you are interested in attending. The class usually fills, so you may want to reserve a spot sooner than later.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
June 1, 10:30-3:00, Speaking at 1:30. Stonefield Village, Cassville, with Susan Apps-Bodilly, my daughter.
June 7, 6:00 p.m. Weyauwega-Fremont Performing Arts Center, 500 E. Ann St. Weyauwega. Presentation: Wisconsin Agriculture: A History. No charge, all welcome.
PURCHASING BOOKS AND DVDs:
Order your signed Apps books and DVDs from the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose, a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
Books To Consider Reading:
The Civilian Conservation Corps in Wisconsin: Nature’s Army at Work.
Simple Things: Lessons From the Family Farm
Garden Wisdom (What I’ve Learned From Gardening)
Cold as Thunder (A look into the future)
.
2 comments:
Beautiful,meaningful post with a picture that matters.
I found your blog via Authors Guild. Your books will certainly be on my list of books to read. I love knowing that you build ideas about land stewardship into your novel's plot lines.
Post a Comment