Many years ago, my Great Grandpa on my Dad's side purchased a 200+ acre piece of land in Eagle Idaho to build a farm on. I don't know the details, but I do know it was back breaking work, and very difficult economic times. He had many sons, one which was My grandpa. They grew up there. They tilled the land, removed many many rocks, dug drain ditches, dug an artisan well, built sheds, corrals for cows. Years of very hard work were put in on this farm. My Grandpa's brother died there when trying to save one of the burning hay sheds his tractor took an edge near one of the very deep drain canals and rolled into it. Eventually my Great Grandpa died there, leaving a hefty mortgage to my Grandpa. Many of us were born there, my dad spent much of his life on that farm. I remember him telling stories of very hard work, and trying to fit school in. He was the oldest boy, and had many expectations. After marrying my mom, my parents moved to the farm to help my Grandpa farm the land and care for the dairy cows, milking and raising. I was born there, and also lived most of my life on that farm. I have many many memories that would take days to write about. We lived in a double wide trailer home out in the back of the farm. We had the biggest playground a kid could ever want. There was a drainage canal right in front of our house which we spent many summers floating and swimming in. I was just down the road from my grandparents and cousins, so family gatherings were very common. As I was getting older my Grandpa felt the crunch to get the Mortgage paid off. He sold many pieces of equipment and his coveted boat. The deadline came and the Mortgage was not meet. The Bank took it over and sold it to some farmers. They were generous to let us all stay and charged a small rent. When the housing market in Eagle was booming...they sold. Currently the farm is under construction for a big neighborhood and Golf Resort. Now to the point of this story. Today we decided to take a break during Conference. We drove out to the farm as close as we could get to where we lived. We walked a short distance through the mud and MANY weeds.
Luckily we still found our driveway. But it was very overgrown with weeds.
We found the cement pad that my dad paid $300 back in the day to lay down for a car port.
Here we are gathered on that cement pad.
We took a little walk over the weed infested back yard to the old pump house across the irrigation canal.
This place holds alot of cherished memories for me.
It was a nice day. And a wonderful walk down memory lane.
As I think about the farm, and all the memories we had there I am reminded that life is so short. We only have a few years to build memories and experiences. It was kind of sad to see it all this way, but I think too often we place so much value on "physical" things and forget that they are truly just "things". The value comes in the experience. I don't remember that being "poor" was bad. I had a very full childhood, and I will carry these memories with me for eternity and all the "things" will stay behind.
Many years ago, my Great Grandpa on my Dad's side purchased a 200+ acre piece of land in Eagle Idaho to build a farm on. I don't know the details, but I do know it was back breaking work, and very difficult economic times. He had many sons, one which was My grandpa. They grew up there. They tilled the land, removed many many rocks, dug drain ditches, dug an artisan well, built sheds, corrals for cows. Years of very hard work were put in on this farm. My Grandpa's brother died there when trying to save one of the burning hay sheds his tractor took an edge near one of the very deep drain canals and rolled into it. Eventually my Great Grandpa died there, leaving a hefty mortgage to my Grandpa. Many of us were born there, my dad spent much of his life on that farm. I remember him telling stories of very hard work, and trying to fit school in. He was the oldest boy, and had many expectations. After marrying my mom, my parents moved to the farm to help my Grandpa farm the land and care for the dairy cows, milking and raising. I was born there, and also lived most of my life on that farm. I have many many memories that would take days to write about. We lived in a double wide trailer home out in the back of the farm. We had the biggest playground a kid could ever want. There was a drainage canal right in front of our house which we spent many summers floating and swimming in. I was just down the road from my grandparents and cousins, so family gatherings were very common. As I was getting older my Grandpa felt the crunch to get the Mortgage paid off. He sold many pieces of equipment and his coveted boat. The deadline came and the Mortgage was not meet. The Bank took it over and sold it to some farmers. They were generous to let us all stay and charged a small rent. When the housing market in Eagle was booming...they sold. Currently the farm is under construction for a big neighborhood and Golf Resort. Now to the point of this story. Today we decided to take a break during Conference. We drove out to the farm as close as we could get to where we lived. We walked a short distance through the mud and MANY weeds.
Luckily we still found our driveway. But it was very overgrown with weeds.
We found the cement pad that my dad paid $300 back in the day to lay down for a car port.
Here we are gathered on that cement pad.
We took a little walk over the weed infested back yard to the old pump house across the irrigation canal.
This place holds alot of cherished memories for me.
It was a nice day. And a wonderful walk down memory lane. 
As I think about the farm, and all the memories we had there I am reminded that life is so short. We only have a few years to build memories and experiences. It was kind of sad to see it all this way, but I think too often we place so much value on "physical" things and forget that they are truly just "things". The value comes in the experience. I don't remember that being "poor" was bad. I had a very full childhood, and I will carry these memories with me for eternity and all the "things" will stay behind.
I loved what you said at the end. I grew up "poor", and I have so many fond memories of my childhood. The memories are what are so important. We grew up in a trailer, but man are there so many fun memories. Great post, it helps to keep things in perspective!!
ReplyDeleteCute post! I love that picture of Dejah walking through the tall grass - so cute! And what a great family outing in between sessions. I need to go outside more!
ReplyDeleteI have a question for you, call me!
Great post. What a neat thing for you and your family to do during conference. Like Carrie, I like how you ended it. We certainly weren't well off when I was young, either, but I never felt like I was missing out on 'things' because we were always together as a family. It is a good thing to remember for our children -- they, too, will remember the time we spend together, not the toy they got. Well, they might remember the toy... :)
ReplyDeleteThat's cool that you went there. I love childhood memories. They are the best!
ReplyDeleteMitzi
What a touching post. Thank you for sharing! The farm I grew up on is no longer in existance and it is a long trip down memory lane every time I go visit the old property.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I am happy about though -- it was never turned into a subdivision -- it went back to wilderness.
Take Care,
Trixie
http://farmhomelife.blogspot.com/
When we used to go to Preston I'd take the kids past my dad's cool, old fashioned pioneer house. Then one day it burned down and I was sick about it. Now I wish I'd have taken some pictures. I love that picture of the little bridge. That's a nostalgic scene. Love those memories!
ReplyDelete