Stories

Have you ever been in a roomful of people and just think of all the stories there must be if you had time to listen to the life story of each?  Sometimes, I have time to hear those stories, particularly with loquacious septic system men or farriers.  Yesterday, the story was about growing up on a dairy and getting up earlier to milk cows before going to school.  Not that I'm not familiar with such  a story, as my dh grew up similarly.

I asked Mr. Septic Man what happened if he refused to work.  "Well, I was only asked onest.  Then, a limb off the tree would be brought to change my mind."  While I've never used physical means to train my children, I do believe some children today would benefit from getting up before school to milk cows and work.

He talked of the small country stores before the advent of Stuff-Mart, and that there wasn't all that much to do as a youngster, but that wasn't much an issue as there was always hard work to fill the hours.  Much of their food was grown on the family land.  He lost his first wife to cancer when she was but 25 years, and his second wife tried to mother his two young daughters, but the daughters never warmed to her.  He and his wife, as a result, "just up and left".  I was afraid to ask details about this, likely to degrade my opinion of him.  Who raised those girls?  Were they grown?  I wondered, but didn't ask.

Another character to add to that book I'm going to write someday.