I grew up on a small farm. When I work with my old tractors this is how it makes me feel. I wrote it to try to capture those feelings and convey them to like minded people.
David D. Davis
Greenfield, Indiana
My Old Tractor And Me
David D. Davis
May 17, 2016
The days gone by we mourn and miss,
But, what a blessing we can reminisce.
Time on our old tractor gives us much,
It begins when we release the old clutch.
That sound of the engines powerful purr,
Makes today’s world become just a blur.
And back come our thought and dreams,
We are young once again or so it seems.
You and the antique tractor are now one,
It is wonderful no matter what gets done.
No where can you feel as close to God,
As when the old plow is turning up sod.
The smells of grease, exhaust and earth,
Your tired spirit feels a sense of rebirth.
As there comes a renewed sense of peace,
All your problems you now can release.
Any old farm boy knows this to be true,
As we realize our life is about through.
Surely heaven is a wonderful place to be,
Hope my old tractor can see it with me.
This is a picture of our first Tractor. Up until then my Dad used two Big Black horses. He bought it at an auction sale. Like so many post WWII G.I.’s, he had had a taste of mechanization in the Army. The Cub easily replaced a team of horses or mules. It was ideal for our little 120 acre farm. My Dad worked on construction (notice the hard hat) so he was just a part time farmer. Most of the farm work fell to my brothers and me. This little red tractor made a very big difference. It was a wonderful piece of equipment. The decline of small farms made it no longer practical. By the way that is my dog in the fore ground. She was a red tick hound and her name, of course, was of course – Freckles.
This is my current Cub at one time I owned seven. This was the first one I bought and have owned it for more than 30 years. It is a ’57 and to my way of thinking was the most beautiful Cub ever made. He is the inspiration for the poem.
David D. Davis
Greenfield, Indiana
R.B. Barnby says
David.. I understand your way of thinking and I have the same mindset.. I grew up with Case VAC tractors, and have retired now and have five of the old faithful VACs.. I also have a VC which was pre VAC.. It looked much like the VAC but had nothing in common with it.. My father bought one thinking he could use it for parts for his VAC but found out the parts would not interchange.. I ended up with the grill and put it on one of my mini rod pulling tractors.. I no longer have the mini rod but still have the grill.. My brother had a Cub like you have and run it for years and worked its guts out in the woods.. The little tractor never failed him.. Enjoy your nice tractor and the memories.. R.B. Barnby, Northern Michigan..