Making hay while the sun shines

I grew up making hay with my family every summer. Weather depending, in the hot afternoon sun we would head to the fields to complete the multi-day process of turning fields of grass into dry bales of hay.  We had our clearly defined tasks: Dad or Gramps were usually on the tractor, sometimes with one of them raking the hay into windrows and the other baling. Gideon and I would help by stacking wagons and unloading the hay. Mom would drive the truck to help pick up bales and provide the water, root beer, hot dogs and chips that got us through the long, hot day. As Gideon and I grew older, our tasks changed a bit. I remember learning to drive a truck in the hayfield when I was 14 or 15 and being very proud of my ability to drive around and pick up bales on my own. Gideon gravitated towards the equipment, learning to cut, rake and bale on his own. I even baled a few times under the watchful eye of Gramps, going around and around the field by the river in the valley.

I think there's something special about making hay - it's a preservation process, taking fields of green summer grass and preserving it for the winter months ahead to feed hungry animals. My favorite part of the process is when the baler eats up the long windrows (large rows of dry hay) and spits out bales. To me, the process mirrors life. As meandering windrows of opportunity and circumstance are laid out before us, we are charged with the task of baling them into something concrete, meaningful and useful. The other haying metaphor I love is the oft-repeated phrase in my family, "Make hay while the sun shines." To me, it means to take advantage of opportunities, to seize the day, to create when the time is right. Writing is an important way for me to work through my own life's windrows and I'm excited to use this blog as a creative outlet and space to share along the way.