The FARM BOY that walked many paths #5

The FARM BOY that walked many paths.

The barn cleaning usually was done with our friend Lawrence and we would do his pens and than ours or vice versa. We would have three tractors and spreaders, two drivers, he and I and Kenny would load. We would haul from right after chores in the morning until dark, do evening chores, eat supper, sleep, and start again. The soybean acres would then be planted after the manure was spread on those acres. If we wouldn’t get all of the manure hauled on those acres then but would start up again after the first crop of alfalfa was baled and finish the manure cleaning project towards the end of June spreading on the alfalfa acres.

This was one of my first years hauling manure. I was coming back toward the farm yard and my foot got stuck between the two brake pedals. You can tell by that how young I was. I was leaning down to help free my foot and I turned the steering wheel and down the ditch I went. Instead of slowing down I steered back out of the ditch and wow I went over the road and down the other side. I started to correct the steering and this time was able to keep on the road after coming out of the ditch. I didn’t think to slow down which didn’t help the situation. Now coming out of the yard was Lawrence and I thought he would say something or shake his fist or something but just like Lawrence, he gave me the thumbs up sign. How much of my bad driving did he see? Then for the next few loads before we stopped to eat I worried about what Kenny would say when he found out. I knew that it wouldn’t be good. Dinner time came and we all stopped and went to the house to eat and I was feeling pretty low. I felt the world would be coming done on me soon.

The smell of the food and usually fresh bread met us at the door and soon we were eating and Lawrence never said a word. We headed back to hauling and I never got confronted on that incident.

Lawrence was the opposite of Kenny. He always had something cheerful to do or say. Kenny was all business all the time. The work kept accelerating for me year after year as far as equipment and responsibilities. I had now taken over the silage pile stacking for the corn silage run in the fall. The work load slow enough that it would give me time to play a little. I would take my football and throw in the air and run and dive for it at the edge of the silage pile. I would catch the ball in the air and tumble 10 feet down the soft silage as though I was some super football star. The fall silage season usually was cold in the morning and hot in the afternoon. The morning I am remembering was the same way. I took off my coverall around 10AM and it felt very comfortable being such a nice fall day. Lawrence always had a trick up his sleeve and I thought of one myself for him. He would bring a load of silage to the silage pile elevator and would unload into the elevator. Then after that he would leave I would take my tractor with loader or push blade and level the pile again and pack the silage by driving back and forth for the time it took for the next load to come.

I could time the process precisely. I took my coverall and filled it with silage and made it look like someone was actually there. I even added a hat. When I knew Lawrence would be able to see the elevator I started the elevator up and sent this stuffed coverall up the elevator and as he got close, I had it timed that the coverall filled with silage would fall off the end of the elevator. I also hide along side of the tractor that was running the elevator so he couldn’t see me. I think Lawrence got a pretty fair chuckle out of that one as during dinner time he did tell Kenny of my mischief.

www.loveforbookwriting.com and www.myovercoat.com ; boomertweet at twitter blog by conrad larson This is a series of blogs , by Conrad Larson