By Orion Rudolph, Ashley, North Dakota

I agree with Lloyd Friedrick's question as to why the line on the map made a difference in the English language. Must be a German thing brought from the old country where people spoke different dialects from one community to another. We also have some of that in ND. An example: When going home. In German, some say 'Nach Hause' others say 'Heim' others say 'Ham.' I normally jokingly say, I always go 'Heim' because it is a 1/4 mile closer than 'Ham'. Usually good for a laugh.

I recall at about the age of 6 in 1944, I had the famed opportunity to go along with the rest of the older siblings to do the work left behind after the binder did it's thing. I don't recall that our family called it 'Stooks or Stooking.' I only recall the process being called putting bundles into a pile with the heads on the upside and called it a 'shock pile.' After several weeks, or maybe even a month later when the threshing crew arrived, these were then loaded on at least 6 or more horse pulled wagons and brought to the threshing machine which was usually set up somewhere near the middle of the field.

My father and mother never wanted a straw pile real close to the farm. Sometimes there was a pile of straw about 1/4 mile away. And, oh were those stubbles hard on my little short legs. Pants were hand me downs and sometimes too short, thus exposed the legs. Mother would wrap some old rags around our legs to help protect them from the stubbles. Yes I also recall the heddering and being on the hedder box. Two horses on the hedder box and four pushing the hedder. I was too young to be a productive person on the box. Probably more of a hindrance than anything. I do recall all the grasshoppers coming on the box. The older person on the box assured me that those grasshoppers won't bit me. It was a year or so later when some hitching apparatus was made on the hedder and hedder box, and two were pulled as one unit with a tractor instead of the horses.

I really enjoy reading the remarks about the great adventures everyone experienced in growing up and remembering the past.