the first pass
quinn asked grampy as soon as he got home from work, the day we arrived, “can i come ride on the tractor with you every time you drive it while i’m here?” the timing of our trip worked out perfectly as we got to be there for both mother’s day and the plowing of the garden! here is the photo-documentary of quinn helping grampy get the garden ready for potatoes, squash, pumpkins and sweet corn.
loam!
it is always amazing to me to watch the plow blades lose their overwintered rust and turn shiny after just a few passes…
shiny plow blades
inspecting their work.
cousin luigi told me emphatically that he is not a farmer, he is a farmer’s helper! it is hard to describe what it was like for me to watch quinn and his cousins get to do something i did so often as a kid. when we were still of an age when we took naps, my brothers and i would frequently ride along on the tractor with dad and take our naps that way. i have distinct memories of the rumbling sound of the tractor throttling back, the lurch of the tractor shifting into gear, the greasy sun-baked dad smell of the worked-in sweatshirt or flannel i would lay snuggled on, the feel of being wedged between the seat and the toolbox bolted to the wheel-well, and the taste of sun-warmed well water drunk out of a 2-liter soda bottle.
oh, and the feel of dirt and rocks filling up my barn boots after walking around in a newly plowed field. it makes me want to pick a bouquet of dandelions and bring it to my mommy, but then there is a whole new generation of small people who get to fill that role now.
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