At the Almelund Thresher Show

Tractor pulls? Antique tractors? Steam powered tractors? When we first approached the site, I thought it was a trailer park. But no, families had hauled their tractors to Taylor Falls, Minnesota from as far away as Florida!

I must admit I went to the thresher show with a bit of a chip on my urban-bred shoulder and the expectation of a few boring hours spent with the sun beating down on my hatless head. But…I did promise my spouse that I’d go.

Surprise! (Once again, farm life comes through with more unexpected, almost beautiful grace notes)

Look at these pictures! Ok, tractors are definitely not as cute as baby goats or even chickens but take a gander at the craftsmanship on display here. Look closer, and what you will see is skill and patience and the joy of preserving and restoring farming and in some cases, family history: this is us, this is how we worked.

Perhaps not visible in the pictures are the families , (and they were all families at this show) the wonderful happy families enjoying the results of their work together and having fun together.

It all sounds so hokey, right? Much better to be at a 10-year old’s soccer game, leave in the third quarter so you can drive like a maniac to the 12-year old’s swim meet after which we all pile into the car to make it to piano lessons by 4 pm.

It's what each of us chooses to define as quality of life. I think I’ll vote for the Thresher Show.