I grew up on a farm as a child… Or at least I thought it was a farm. I was the youngest of 9 boys, and there was ALWAYS work to do. My father and brothers handled the heavy machinery, the livestock, and made sure everything was organized. I simply took orders and handled the dirty work. “Yes sir,” was all I really knew.
When I was a child, video games did not exist; instead, I spent my time playing with our English Sheepdogs. They were my best friends and I relished watching them herd.
I never understood why our dogs couldn’t come inside. I had seen the movie Lassie, and heard my classmates talk about giving their pups “table-food? What was table food? Ohh I see.. ” I was envious.
So on one cold night, I went to the barn, and took my mother’s nicest polyester blankets.
When I reached the barn, I vividly recall seeing my two best friends shaking in the cold. I immediately wrapped them in my mother’s blankets and held them in my arms. I did this for the next month and enjoyed every moment. The 3 of us kept each other warm.
One cold night, prior to going to bed, my mother went looking for her blankets, the ones I had been using for the dogs in the barn…I was terrified of what would happen when she found out what I did. As a fragile 8 year boy, I couldn’t lie. I’ll never forget how angry my mother was nor did I understand. “They are just blankets?” At least that is what I thought.
As I mentioned before, we were a big family, and everyone had their own tasks. I knew my father’s role, my brothers, role, and mine, but I was oblivious to my mother’s role and what was really happening around me. I never knew my mother spent hours with a thread and needle .
Do you recall me stating, “I thought I grew up on a farm?” With all the heavy machinery, the livestock, the dogs, what was I supposed to think? How was I supposed to know we were making fabric? I learned real quick when my mother found her beautifully woven blankets chewed up by Roxie and Montana.
Now I am all grown up and would not change a thing about my childhood, except maybe to appreciate the beautiful fabrics we were creating. If my mother were still alive today, I have no doubt she would be an interior designer. I just wish she could see how far we have come. As for the dogs, a day does not go by, where they don’t rest peacefully on a plush piece of fabric.
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This 2-year-old pup does not care how small an animal is – she is determined to save every single one of them. Whenever Holliday the German shepherd/border collie mix goes on a walk with her owner Caitlyn Beebe, she makes sure to rescue all of the earthworms that are stranded on the hot dry pavement. “She…