Hibiscus House is proud to present Mandy Maddocks. Pour yourself a cup of coffee, sit back and enjoy this wonderful story! She is an extremely talented writer as you will see.
Even as a young girl, I knew that farming was
what I wanted to do. I followed my dad all around the farm every day,
and did not want to be confined to the house! At twelve years old, I
raised a pair of oxen, all by myself. I was determined that I could
train a team, and I did it! I would haul logs down the road in winter to
our saw mill to help my dad out. In the summer all my friends enjoyed
riding behind Brutus and Bandit in a cart. I also raised my own turkeys
to earn some spending money for several years. I milked cows every day
for my dad, and did field work all summer. While other kids were
playing, I was working, but I enjoyed it. It satisfied my soul. My dad
always said he would never trade us hard working girls for boys. He was
proud of us! I was independent, and could hot wire a tractor, or throw a
hay bale better than the best of the boys. I was outside all day, and
only came home to the whistle that beckoned us for supper. We could
never leave the farm much, but we had all we needed
right there. Our gardens overflowed with bountiful produce, and our
cows gave plenty of creamy milk. We had beef, pork, and chicken to our
heart's content. We didn't have a lot of money, but we
didn't realize it. We may not have had name brand clothes, but our
lives were rich. Rich in adventure, and in lessons taught on the farm.
My sister, and I are the third generation on our family farm, and I am growing four boys for a fourth generation. :)
A lot of things haven't changed since my grandfather's day, such as our
use of Belgian work horses to do most of our field work. We still use
many old hand tools, and like to do things the old simple way. I haven't
been able to let go of this way of life, and I don't want to! I believe
that God puts a desire, and a passion within certain people, otherwise
there would be no one to feed the population! Who in their right mind
would willingly take on a wild heifer to milk her for the first time, or
hang tight to the reigns of a run-a-way
horse while being dragged through fresh manure, and being thrashed over
jagged rocks?!?! Who would want to wake at an early hour to feed, and
tend to a herd of
animals that may be tearing
down your entire fence that very afternoon?!?! Why would someone
volunteer to have their heart broken on those days when they have to
hold their favorite goat as she takes her last breath, or not be able to
save that new baby calf as it is being born?!?! Farmers take a beating
physically, and emotionally. Despite all of this, the positives
definitely outweigh the negatives! A walk out through the woods behind
the farm stills my heart, and refreshes my mind. Goat kids pouncing on
each other, and horses racing with manes flying in the wind, and hooves
pounding hard on the earth, and into your heart, is what renews my faith
in farming. Plucking dew laden berries from the garden, or sipping
fresh milk from your cows, it does your soul good. Walking barefoot
through the garden, sniffing the long row of peonies, running your
fingers over the softness of a horses nose, capturing lightening bugs
for a living lantern, watching your children run free on an
adventure.....this is what it's all about!
Post about building Log Cabin HERE
You can find Mandy at Muck Boots and Lipstick Blog
Muck Boots and Lipstick Facebook
Farm Girl Whimsy Facebook
Unique hand-made products by a Maine farm girl. Junk turned treasure,
one of a kind finds, organic beauty products, natural and safe household
cleaners, fabulous junk turned jewelry, antique furniture....
I am in awe of Mandy and her family. I
think that anything she sets her mind too she can and will do! Mandy
thank you for sharing your life with us. You are certainly blessed with
many talents and I'm grateful you allowed us see some of them.
Sharing with
From the Farm Blog Hop here
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