CALF_News_December_2018_January_2019

38 CALF News • December 2018 | January 2019 • www.calfnews.net I t was a very hot, dry, late July afternoon. We had been working on a silage chopper most of the day. This isn’t a brand new chopper. In fact, it was a farm sale “bargain” that my father-in-law found last year. He has a habit of finding these great “treasures” at sales and hauling them home for my husband to fix. This chopper’s life on our farm was quickly coming to a close if it didn’t produce this year. (Last year, it sat at the edge of the field while the other chopper did all the work). This year was going to be different. Matt had spent hours and hours working and tweaking to fix it. Finally, he said the words I had been dreading hearing for two weeks –“Get the four wheeler, the wrenches and hammer, and meet me in the field.We’re going to cut.” The first alarm bell – he didn’t say,“Go get the truck.” He said,“Bring the four wheeler,” meaning we had a quick ride back for more tools, and he wasn’t anticipating that we’d be filling the silage wagon any time soon. The second alarm bell – by the time I had rounded up the aforementioned items and topped the hill to see the field, the chopper was already stopped 50 feet into the field. The third alarm bell – after arriving at the chopper, the head was jammed with corn, which my husband (aka My Forever) was pulling it out by hand. At this point, I was ready to call the professionals to get the field custom cut. We’re talking days Matt had spent working on this chopper, and it didn’t make it 50 feet! However, My Forever won’t give up (a pro or con I’m still trying to figure out). We fought with it, making it only about 500 feet farther in about two hours. Then, driving down the waterway to the chopper and four wheeler (now overflowing with tools after about five trips back to the shop) came Matt’s uncle and aunt, Henry and Tracy Hill. They have had a chopper similar to ours for quite some time. Apparently, Matt had texted Henry for some advice. Instead of simply texting back a quick reply, they showed up in the field! Henry got in the chopper with Matt while I started chatting with Tracy. After a quick run through the different levers, Henry fired that baby up and off they went! In about 10 minutes Henry had the wagon filled. After deciding the corn wasn’t quite ready to chop all of it, the chopper headed back to the shed for some more tweaks before really getting started. The next evening, Henry and Tracy showed up at the shop with parts off their machine, their work clothes on ready to help us fix it and supper to boot. That machine eventually filled the silos this year. After getting the kinks out of it, it worked like a dream. There aren’t many people left like Henry and Tracy. Mar- rying into a family can be intimidating. They have always welcomed me, included me and truly made me feel like a part of the family. Each has the patience of Job. They are willing to help anybody and everybody, and don’t ask for anything in return. They have this unhurried approach to life that few have. Any time I’m with them, the world gets a little brighter, the problems a little smaller. They work together on a daily basis and yet still love each other, still want to spend time together. They truly are one of the few couples we look up to in our marriage and say,“When we grow up, we want a marriage like that.”  C E L E B R A T I N G PEOPLE Side by Side Building a Legacy Every Day By Kelsey Pagel Contributing Editor