Old Farmer's Advice

At my photography class last night I showed the shots from yesterday's post from Dad's barn as well as the one above. I said that they were all from my Dad's front yard and that got everyone's attention. I think one guy was ready to take a field trip until he found out it was a few hours away.

One person asked if I had a picture of my Dad which got me thinking. Next time I'm home I'm going to have him wake me up when he gets up at the crack of dawn to go check the cattle and photograph him doing what he loves. He has such a distinct look and character which should make some damn good pictures especially in the early morning light.

My Mom sent me the following forward this week which I thought had some very good advice from an old farmer's perspective. I particularly love the last one.

"Life is simpler when you plow around the stump."

"A bumble bee is considerably faster than a John Deere tractor."

"Words that soak into your ears are whispered.....not yelled."

"Meanness don't just happen overnight."

"Forgive your enemies; it messes up their heads."

"Do not corner something that you know is meaner than you."

"It don't take a very big person to carry a grudge."

"You cannot unsay a cruel word."

"Every path has a few puddles."

"When you wallow with pigs, expect to get dirty."

"The best sermons are lived, not preached."

"Most of the stuff people worry about, ain't never gonna happen anyway."

"Don 't judge folks by their relatives.

"Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer."

"Live a good and honorable life, then when you get older and think back, you'll enjoy it a second time."

"Don 't interfere with somethin' that ain't bothering you none."

"Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance."

"If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin'."

"Sometimes you get, and sometimes you get got.

"The biggest troublemaker you'll probably ever have to deal with, watches you from the mirror every mornin'."

"Always drink upstream from the herd."

"Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment."

"Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier than puttin' it back in."

"If you get to thinkin' you're a person of some influence, try orderin' somebody else's dog around."

"Live simply, love generously, care deeply,
speak kindly, and leave the rest to God."

"Don't pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you."

And........................................