The Life of a Farm Girl

My parents are farmers. Well, my dad is the real farmer since my mom makes everything that grows die, but my mom does a lot of work on the farm in her own right. She does the bookkeeping, makes phone calls, runs errands, etc. As one of 5 girls growing-up on a farm we all played our part too. We learned how to pray for the weather based on the season and need. We appreciate neat and straight rows in a field. We are fluent in farm-lingo. We wore over-alls and plaid as children. We know how high the corn should be by July 4th. We love the beauty of the earth and the cycle of growth. We know how to read the markets. And we rise and fall with the morning and evening sun making us much more productive in the morning than at night. While I know how to drive the tractors this really hasn't been my focus. I've been the one who runs parts between fields or goes to town to run errands.

One thing I love about being home is having coffee each morning with my mom. We meet in the living room or out on the porch if it's warm enough early in the morning. Still wearing our pajamas we enjoy the warmth of that beautiful first morning cup of coffee. With it being spring and planting season, our coffee time is sometimes interrupted with a request to do something on the farm. This morning my dad needed a belt brought out to one of the fields where our tractor was planting. My mom got dressed and I decided to go along for the ride but to forgo getting dressed quite yet. I threw on a coat and slipped into a pair of ballet flats believing I'd be sitting in the car the whole time.

Once at the field my dad called to tell me he needed the seed bin back and I should drive it home. So, still in my nightie with my glasses on, I climbed into our big diesel truck and made the slow (40 mph) drive home with the seed bin behind me. I didn't look exactly like the farm girl I know how to be but I felt confident and content in my role.

Me with the seed bin about to make the journey home
(Notice the gingham nightie - still resemble farm girl a little:) )