When I was in high school an innovative physical education teacher introduced a program designed to help students develop the habit of exercising regularly. At that time, I was a total non athlete but the 100 Mile Club challenge captured my interest and I signed up. It was a very simple concept. A huge chart went up on the wall of the gymnasium and participants filled in a tiny square for each mile that they ran, jogged or walked. My mother used the odometer on the family car to figure out one and two mile courses around our neighbourhood and I was on my way.

I don’t remember how long we had to complete the challenge or what the reward for those who finished was. I do remember, however, that a sprained ankle took me out less than half way to the goal. I was an awkward teen and it seemed I was always spraining something! Though I was happy to have an excuse to miss phys ed class, I was deeply disappointed that I couldn’t finish my 100 miles.

I haven’t quite figured out what motivated me to go from being that awkward, non athletic teenager to the fairly fit middle aged woman that I am today. I suppose that marrying a phys ed teacher might have had something to do with it! We have a mini gym in our basement complete with three weight benches and lots of free weights. Richard and I lift weights 3 times a week all winter long.

Though I’m not sure what caused it, I’ve been being treated for tendinitis in both shoulders for the past few months. They’re much better than they were and I’ve been able to start exercising them with resistance bands but when I saw my doctor at the beginning of this month he cautioned me not to start thinking about lifting weights. When I asked what else I could do for exercise, his answer was simple. Walk!

I’ve always enjoyed walking and the treadmill that we added to our basement gym several years ago means that I can do it even when the weather is bad. As I thought about what the doctor said and the fact that I might not be able to lift weights this winter, I decided to keep track of the amount of walking I do. That’s when I remembered the 100 Mile Club. It may be a little after the fact, but I’ve decided to take up the challenge again and walk 100 miles! I know, it’s not the 60s anymore and Canada has long since gone metric but the treadmill measures in miles and I can use Google Pedometer to calculate the distance that I walk outdoors in either miles or kilometers so for this challenge, miles it is.

I’m off to a good start. In fact, since I started keeping track three weeks ago I’ve already walked 22 miles! It’s easier to stick with an exercise program of any kind if you have a fitness buddy or make yourself accountable to someone so if you read my blog regularly you’ll notice my mileage at the top of each upcoming post. By committing myself to reporting to you, I hope to complete my 100 miles and perhaps many more. Hopefully there are no sprained ankles to stop me this time!

I wish I could say that the blog has been silent these past couple of weeks because I’ve been busy combining wheat and canola. Instead, I’ve been bemoaning the cold wet weather that has kept us off the fields. As each day goes by and winter creeps closer, the situation becomes more and more critical. Not only does time become short but the longer we have to wait, the more the quality of the grain deteriorates. What looked like a bountiful harvest a few weeks ago is in danger of being lost and the mood of the community is sombre.

As long as I’ve lived in a rural community, I’ve recognized the importance of the weather to the local economy but never so much as since I started working on the farm during seeding and harvest. Now I check the forecast several times a day. Finally today we have reason for hope! Though the sky is gray and the ground wet, there’s no more rain in the 14 day forecast! If it’s correct, and oh how we hope it is, it will still be several days before we can be back in the fields. Not only does the mud have to dry so that the heavy equipment doesn’t get stuck in the fields but the grain itself will spoil if it’s combined and stored when its moisture content is too high.

We also have another reason for optimism. In over 60 years of farming, Louis (the farmer that we work for) has never seen a year without a harvest! Some have been better than others, of course. There have been lean years and years of plenty but never a year without any grain in the bins. We trust that this will not be the first.

In church yesterday, we were reminded of the words of the Old Testament prophet, Habbakuk, who said “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength.” (3:17-19a) Ultimately, our hope is in Him.

Richard is out swathing canola so I’ll be combining soon and I can hardly wait! I love harvest time!

Usually when we combine, the straw is cut up and spread back over the field. Last year, however, the cutters came off before I started combining wheat. Another farmer who was in need of bales had arranged to come in and bale it. When we seeded this spring, we discovered that he’d left a lot of baling twine laying in the fields; definitely poor farming etiquette! It was constantly getting tangled around the equipment and that’s when I came to the conclusion that I wasn’t a real farmer yet. A real farmer carries a pocket knife!

When we travel, I like to buy practical souvenirs; things we can actually use rather than fancy knickknacks that collect dust. This summer when we visited the John Deere Pavilion in Moline, Illinois, home of the John Deere farm implement company, I knew exactly what I wanted to buy. A pocket knife, of course! With Richard’s help, I chose one made of stainless steel with the John Deere logo imprinted on the shaft. It has a wooden handle and a 3 inch locking blade.

I also bought this, simply because I loved it and sometimes a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do!

When I told my son, Nathan, that I’d bought myself a knife, his immediate response was “That’s not the mom I grew up with!” When my boys were young, I was quite nervous about them handling knives. Richard, being a farm boy himself, thought they ought to be able to. Well, Nate, who knew back then that Mama would grow up to be a farmer? From now on, when I’m out in the field, I’ll have my knife in my pocket just like the rest of them!