Farm Friend Friday - My Farm Family

Now that we are living on our farm, I can always depend upon clearing my mind while caring for the horses and being outside.  Cleaning two stalls is a snap, tidying up the barn, washing water buckets, feeding and caring for the horses, barn cats and deer are treasured tasks that I love completing.  All are easy for me to do and I enjoy doing them. But my farm work is not hard, my life doesn't depend upon the outcome of my labors.  And my mind, well, I find my thoughts wander back in the day....to the days where real farm work was done.  To the times where your body ached from non stop activity that lasted easily into 10-16 hour long days no matter if you were a man or a woman.

Fred Neal walking in Elijah's hay field.  Fred would summer at Elijah's farm and that is how my Grampy and Grammy met....they knew eachother since they were babies.

Young Floyd Fuller tending to his cows in Warren, VT

I am blessed to share the blood of real farmers.  Vermont farmers to be specific. Dairy cows, draft horses, driving horses, chickens, etc.  Those were the days when horses were the machines.  Big beautiful powerful cold blooded horses.  My grandfathers (maternal and great) were excellent horse trainers though Elijah was the special one, the human who's gifts exceeded the norm.

The Elijah and Harriet Fuller family

What a sense of humor!

I love to gaze at their photos. I love to wonder about all of their accomplishments. Oh, how I wish I could talk with all of them.  Hattie, how many pies did you have to make each day when hay harvest time came and you had to single handily feed your husband, your four boys plus the working men for noon dinner?   Elijah, how did you learn about medicinal plants, and cures for the horses and cows. How did you get to be sought out by your community when the local vet was unsuccessful?  And that horse's leg that was broken, where in the world did you get the idea to hoist him in a sling to keep weight off his healing bone? It didn't matter how hard my great grandparents worked on their farm, they found time for others.  They both were sought out in the community for helping the sick horses (Elijah) and sick humans (Hattie).  Hattie would have been considered a nurse in today's world.  Off she would go in her horse and buggy down the long winding Fuller hill and into the town of Warren to help those in need.

Hattie wrote on the back of this pic that 'she looked mean but the sun was shining so brightly'.

My great Aunt Anna, Gena Davis Neal's sister.  Anna loved her chicken babies and her french bull dogs.

Thankfully my grandfather was still alive as I reached adulthood and his descriptions of life as a farm boy have been recorded by the Vermont Cultural Center.  One such story I do remember were the dances he so loved to attend.  He was a talented fiddle player and was part of the instrumental group providing the music which allowed him a tiny bit of spending money.  One evening he played until the dances ended at 3:30 in the wee hours! He never made it to bed and went directly to the barn to begin the long process of hand milking since he had a change of clothes.  I think I remember him saying he didn't dare go into the house for fear of waking his parents and catching hell.  He always laughed and said he would never pull that trick again!  

Baby Floyd Fuller who played the violin all his life with brother Claron who didn't play...funny.

Grammy and Grampy Fuller

My sister and I love to reminisce of our childhood days spent visiting our grandparents while vacationing in Randolph, Vermont. Grammy always had beautiful flower and vegetable gardens.  She baked donuts for us in the mornings and delicious hot meals at noon.  We thought it was very strange to eat dinner during the day and lunch in the evenings.   I remember her working on her braided rugs. Thankfully I have a couple and a part of her lives with me in our home.  She was so talented at decorating for Christmas and to this day we wonder where all those lovely treasures have disappeared to...sigh...those were the days!

Elijah Fuller family with Fred Neal family.  Young Floyd Fuller and young Gertrude Neal sitting down.  Wonder what they would have thought at that time had someone told them they would be marry as adults?

Neal family during harvest time.

These are my some of my favorite images. I see pride in their eyes, strength in their bodies, and a love and zest for their lives.  I am very proud to be a part of my farm family and thinking of them and how hard they worked is a wonderful way to clear my mind and set things straight.  Not that things are so crooked and clogged up there, but you know what I mean!  ;~)



Grammy with Lady in 1951. Grampie had just purchased the mare from the Hewitts.

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