laura-jeanne.com

I left the city limits today. Not a big deal, but I tend to get stuck in my little world and forget how lovely it is to head into wide open spaces.

I love driving east this time of year because I get to watch the combines move around the field, swallowing up the swaths. This is ingrained in me (no pun intended) because only a farm girl at heart could love this sight as much as I do.

It reminds me of harvest time as a kid, on the farm. Days revolved around weather. Hoping for long stretches of sunshine. Having to wait for the dew to dry.

Sometimes, I would ride with Mom up to the field. Mom would take over driving the combine while Dad would take the grain truck down to the yard and unload it into the granary.

I’d ride along with Dad to dump the grain. He’d always warn me to stay back from the auger – he didn’t need to, it scared me. I loved watching the truck tip and the grain spill into the tub at the bottom of the auger. Then it swirled up the auger and into the top of the granary.

Sometimes, Dad would let me do a round with him in the combine before Mom and I headed back to the house. Our combine was not fancy like they are today, but there was something about the big steering wheel, the large window overlooking the header and watching us scoop up the swaths that I loved.

I can almost smell the dust. I can smell that old grain truck, I can see my dad’s dusty jeans and t-shirt, and I remember what it was like to be there. I love these memories.