As if countries around the globe didn’t have enough concerns, the announcement about swine flu has added a further dimension of issues for everybody.
Today we are reporting four suspected cases of the virus in Ontario, and News reports indicate 13 cases country wide.
Further, reports on national News sites are suggesting that hundreds of cases exist in the New York City school population.
The sweeping nature of such bugs is natural.
There will be fallout in an economic sense as productivity in workplaces wanes due to illness. For the farm community, however, which relies on migrant workers, there are larger problems that will surface.
Talk shows on the subject of farm labour this past week bordered on hilarious. Some innocent types figured Canadian workers could fill the void, while the more experienced knew well enough that labour on farms could easily become a major issue.
The simple fact is migrant workers are an important part of vegetable and market gardening.
Very few young people would toil for a day in the field at a good rate of pay, let alone for the wages paid to migrant workers. With the possibility of workers delayed pending medical check-ups, producers could have a very large problem on their hands.
In terms of safety and avoiding the flu, we recommend listening to all those clever lines that mothers have issued over the years.
Keep your hands washed, cover your mouth when coughing and use some common sense when being around people not feeling well.
Sounds of spring
There’s a bit of a joke about hibernation around our house. Winter can be a time of rest on the farm in old Eramosa – at our place it sure is.
Apart from chores, it is pretty easy for a few extra pounds to settle onto the mid-section while waiting for spring to arrive.
This year was no different, apart from getting a little longer in the tooth and maybe having to work a little harder to get back into better shape.
The frogs have begun to sing and the buds on trees are now poking their way through their own winter slumber. The soil is letting off that sweet smell of renewal, as wheat fields green up and patches of twitch take hold. The frogs need to sing a few more times.
Livestock, too, have started their happy dance. It won’t be long and pastures will be opened for young calves and lambs to jump and bound across the field with little regard for new legs they haven’t used much yet.
The horses, too, will stretch their long limbs kicking into the season like a prize winner at the rodeo. It’s a great time to be alive and enjoy the wonders of spring.
There are other sounds too that will bring a smile to many faces. Most of us, more young at heart than young, can’t wait to climb on our old mounts and drag a cultivator across a field, tempting fate with wet spots just to see if the tractor gets stuck or not.
Seed drills and other implements will be greased up, ready to go as soon as the ground dries a bit from recent rains. As days stretch into night, the smell of fresh soil and the night air around 10pm fill the spirit with an elixir that says keep on going.
Come midnight, the enthusiasm might slow down a little, but the word of rain on the radio suggests it’s worth carrying on a little longer. Hopefully there’s enough fuel in the tank and enough seed in the drill to make the last few rounds.
Tired and warn, the legs wobble a bit, making the step from the tractor to the ground. What a great day. The old tractor has been shut down after running a few minutes at an idle.
The stillness of the night becomes apparent as the exhaust lets out one last final breath of diesel. It is now quiet, except for a little ringing in the ears from a day in the field.
Tomorrow it will start again, barring a change in weather.
Although our time on the farm now is quite limited, we look back to those old days in our youth as the best of times, despite the longs days and poor pay.
