Chris Clegg
Does anything get a bad rap as much as school?
For the unfortunate few, attending school was not an enjoyable experience. It was not the case for me, however.
But what kid didn’t begin counting down the last few days of school and looking forward to summer holidays? A month to go! Two weeks! One week? Five days! Four, three, two, one! Yahoo! It was like Christmas in June!
Born and raised on the farm, there were chores to do. I had two older brothers so they looked after the market steers (square bales were too heavy for me to lift!) while I was tasked with caring for the pigs and chickens. It was easy work. As I aged into my teens, I drove the tractor and did some cultivating. Again, easy work but it had to be done!
The point is, there was plenty of time for play or watching the CFL on TV. To even suggest I was overworked or hard done by is ridiculous. I probably whined about it, though! Others had it a lot worse than I. Never did I get sent to town to pack groceries for eight hours a day or pump gas. I was never a slave to the clock. The pigs and chickens didn’t mind if they got fed at 4 p.m. or 6 p.m. They never went hungry!
Farm life was awesome so counting down the days until summer holidays when I got to spend more time there was something to look forward to. Having many cousins nearby also afforded me the opportunity to get a baseball game or soccer game organized quickly. When done, there was always a pitcher of Kool-Aid ready or Popsicles made from the Kool-Aid. Mom must have spent a small fortune on sugar! It was a good life!
I don’t remember too many barbecues or meals, but I sure looked forward the ripening of the saskatoons and raspberries. Garden fresh vegetables, especially the pea patch! I was able to get my peas to flower into September each year, if the frost held off. My pea patch was so big my brothers and sisters, as well as many neighbourhood kids, enjoyed frequent raids. We were in there almost every day enjoying a quick snack. I liked my peas when they were smaller and juicier, not when they got big. There were plenty to go around.
And pepper grass (water cress) sandwiches! Just a bit of butter and salt! Delicious!
Same with small potatoes before they get too big. They just melt in your mouth.
As you notice, many of the activities I have listed are enjoyed by many who still live on farms. Truth be told, farm life is still probably the best lifestyle.
For years, I often thought about buying an acreage and moving out of town. It never happened. I was still very happy with my home in town. Turns out I was too lazy to ever plant a garden. That little patch of land in the back would be an insult to the big garden I cared for years ago.
The irony of the matter is when August came I began counting the days until school started. Sure, we played the game we all “hated” school but the real truth is we were ready to return and see old friends.
Besides, the saskatoons and raspberries were long gone, the pea patch was waning, the water cress gone long ago.
Perhaps this was God’s way of telling me it was time to hit the books!