Monday, June 28, 2010

Sharing a Farming Heritage


As I browsed through my first copy of Mary Jane's Farm magazine, I began to reminisce about my farm girl heritage. I grew up on a dairy farm in the Hudson River Valley of New York State during the 1940s and 50s.

Even though those memories are ingrained in my mind and form part of my heritage, my daughter and grandchildren, nieces and nephews won't know about them unless I record the stories in some form.

My husband grew up on a dairy farm in New Hampshire, as did his father. My parents came from farming backgrounds in NYS.

Although we don't live on farms now, the years of childhood shaped our lives and character. They instilled a work ethic that has taken us through the decades.

Photos of the farming activities bring back memories, as do writings of my parents and grandfather.

I'd like to share these memories and experiences with those who enjoy reading my blog. Perhaps you'll realize the value of your farming heritage, too.
(Image; sxc.hu)

Friday, June 18, 2010

Memories of a Farming Heritage


Since my daughter and grandchildren didn't grow up on farms as my husband and I did, nor have had the opportunity to spend much time on one, I've started a blog to collect some of the memories of work and play that have given Jim and me our backgrounds to cope with life.


Dairy farming as we knew it, in general, has gone the way of large corporate farms. But I wouldn't trade my childhood and teen years as a farmer's daughter for any other life. Sometimes we wondered, as youngsters, if the hard work was worth it. But, for the most part, we simply accepted it as our life and realized we had it much better than so many other youngsters.


Sometimes, though, we couldn't understand why our friends liked to spend time on the farm with us, helping with work and staying in a house that wasn't as modern as theirs. They seemed to enjoy their hours spent with us.
(Image: sxc.hu)