5/14/2009:
Home Grown: German-Russian Farm Kids Remember
"I Shouldn't Say Not Heavy Work"
Mary Sellinger
Interviewed: Regina, SK, 27 July 2007
Born: Dilke, SK, 27 January 1923
We had to help out with everything, not heavy, heavy work, but although I shouldn't say not heavy work I used to pitch a lot of bundles. I had to help with the farm. I know Peggy used to have to help with the farming when we used to combine. We didn't combine, we had what you call it machine binders and we didn't have anything to tie it with so they used to be (ah) the wheat would just come through on this box that dad would have on the binder, Peggy would be standing on it and every so often she would have to shove it off. Till we got going, then dad finally got a binder with the string and the stuff to tie it, we had to stook, we had to make the stooks up good, mother and I had to go behind it and put the stooks up so they would dry.
Every now and then we would have to stop and get a drink of water and we would have our pail with our lunch in it if we were hungry we'd have our cucumber, our bread our bun or whatever was in it, our watermelon. We'd sit down and have lunch and then away we'd go and you know when we just cut off this high (indicates) and you would have your boots on and your ankles would get all marked and with sores when you were walking through it all the time. Didn't have big boots on like they have today, these Adidas and everything else, it was just ordinary little shoes, had to use that.
But I remember doing that and when the threshing time came we had to help with all the chores, getting the meals all ready, cause you made big meals for the threshers and it was always a group of people around to do, and many a time I, especially on our own field, I would help my brother John, we would have to get up on top of the rake, he'd throw it up and I would set it, and I was only about 10-12 years old and to go and help them, it was pretty tough in those days but you had to do it when we were little, different things.