The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
by Natalie (Dowell) Schmitt – mnschmitt@jetup.net
aging Gracefully
column written in 1/30/2017 P> I was shopping for farm jeans at Saver’s last month when an announcement came across the intercom.
“Attention shoppers. Today there is a 30% discount for shoppers over 55.”
I thought too bad I wasn’t that old. When I put my clothes on the checkout counter, the clerk asked me if I wanted the senior discount.
I told her I wouldn’t qualify for another month. She said that was close enough.
Now I didn’t know what to think. Did I look that old? I sure didn’t feel in my mid-fifties. Before I could process the thought of using the senior discount, the clerk announced that I saved over $15. Maybe getting older isn’t such a bad deal after all!
I don’t think I’ve changed much over the years. I still wear jeans and t-shirts every day. I just don’t tuck the shirts in anymore. I always have my hair tucked up in a baseball cap. I still look like one of the guys.
While the clothes are still a young style, they are covering an older body. I don’t spring up from my milking squats as quickly. I will grab a tail and pull myself up or push up on a stall divider.
I prefer to walk across the yard instead of jog. I don’t seem to be in such a hurry to get tools for repairing broken water cups.
But when cattle are out, I can still run them down as long as they don’t run too fast! I’m trying to age gracefully in my own style.
I bring up age because we seem to be at a crossroads as we face another year of farming. We realize we need to adjust the way we do things in order to get the job done. We are getting older but so is everything else on the farm.
We have to start asking ourselves when does something get too old? This might be considered a trick question around here.
Mark’s grandfather Nick built the original dairy barn in 1936 with 12 stalls on the south side for his Guernsey cows and 6 stalls on the north side for the work horses. It was a simple practical barn built to last as long as the wooden beams stayed true.
Over time the horses left and the stalls were converted for more cows. The beams were reinforced or replaced to keep things working. Mark’s dad Ralph realized his dad’s barn wasn’t going to be a barn for the future. He had replaced the Guernseys with Holsteins and they were becoming too big for the small stalls. His two young sons were also getting bigger.
The new barn was built in 1971. Ralph built a 50 New York style comfort stall barn with teal blue/green steel siding and white trim. It was the style and color of the times.
It was a welcomed change from the old barn. The stalls were bigger. The lighting was brighter. The feed delivery system was easier. There was room for the boys to help their dad farm.
By 1981 Ralph added 30 stalls when the boys came home to farm full time. The barn has been tweaked with a few new updates over the past 45 years. I’m pretty sure every water cup has been replaced but all in all, the barn has held up well.
This brings up to our crossroads. Is this the barn for the next generation? Do we keep investing money in repairs and updates or do we put it towards something new? Or do we say enough is enough? How old is too old?
Here might be another way of looking at things. The first tractors Ralph used to farm with were an old John Deere “B” and a John Deere 530. These were his big tractors in the 1950’s. Over time these tractors were retired to the back of the machine shed and forgotten as bigger equipment was needed to keep up with the demands of a growing farm. Once Ralph retired, he rescued his 530 from the shed and worked to restore it to the glory days. It looks great on the outside but still only has 30 horsepower under the hood. It can’t keep up with the 200 horsepower tractors we run today but we still use it for moving chopper boxes and hay inverters out of the sheds. It still serves a purpose but not in its original capacity.
A few years ago Austin pulled the old “B” out of the machine shed and restored it as well. Now we have 2 old tractors that look like new. They look great in a parade or as moveable lawn ornaments.
Even though the old tractors and the old barn look good on the outside they struggle to fit into today’s farming practices. Some might say they are nothing more than monuments to previous generations. I think they bring a sense of character and charm to the farm. The old hip roofed barn stands as a sentry at the end of the driveway. It welcomes guests and serves as a reminder of simpler days.
EEventually we will stop using the old barn to house calves. When that time comes, we’ll have to discover a new use for an old barn that has aged gracefully over the years. Just like us, I guess the life expectancy of a barn depends upon how you take of it from the inside out.