A person that I have always admired is my grandpa Joyle. His hard-working, energetic, and caring personality has helped make me the person I am today. I decided to sit down with my grandpa and discus how he grew up and how his childhood shaped his 93+ years of life. Many of his memories I found very interesting and helped me appreciate all that I have now. His never-ending work ethic and creative mind showed even when he was a kid

My grandpa grew up on a farm in Deronda in the mid 1920’s. Although he had plenty of time to explore and be a kid, my grand father spent most of his childhood days working on the farm raising crops and livestock. He and his siblings worked long days in order to provide for and support the family. Grandpa has a lot of stories about his time working on the farm like the time he created a barn gutter cleaning system that made his everyday chores a lot easier. He designed and built the system himself and used it until they sold the cattle.

            Much of his childhood was during the Great Depression. My grandpa felt really lucky that he lived on a rural farm at the time. Their family provided by themselves and they didn’t have to worry about losing their jobs or looking for work because there was always enough work to do on the farm. Between the beef cattle, chickens, milk cows, and many field of crops the family had plenty to provide for themselves. They could also trade goods and services with neighbors. From what I can tell, my grandpa and his family always got along with neighbors in the community at the time, which meant that everybody took care and looked out for one another.

            Another large part of his childhood was spent delivering mail with his father. My great grandfather was a rural route mail carrier, and my grandpa always went along on routes to be the one who would run the mail from the horse-drawn carriage to whichever house they were delivering to. They delivered mail with horses, and because the route was so long they had to use two teams of horses. One team was kept at the half-way point, so when they got that far they would switch teams. Delivering mail in the winter time meant it was a lot harder for the horses to get around in the snow. This is when my grandpa’s creative personality began to shine again. He decided to create a homemade snowmobile out of a Ford Model T. He added skis on the front and tracks on the back tires and this once again made his daily routes a lot easier and warmer.

            One of the more entertaining stories that my grandpa told me was how he and his dad would stay warm in the sleigh/snowmobile while delivering mail in the colder months. He told me that they would bring a wooden box with a few holes cut in it and they would put hot coals inside. This is where they would put their boots to help keep their feet warm during the long trips. They also would stuff their pockets with hot potatoes to keep their hands and body warm. My grandpa remained involved with mail delivery until he was physically able to. He became the Post Master in Amery and kept that job for many years. My grandpa even still owns the old horse-drawn sleigh that he and his father used to use on their route.

            My grandfather lived through droughts, floods, the coldest winters, the most brutal summers, good times, and even the Great Depression. Through all of this his hard working character and caring personality was always visible. My grandpa has never been one to complain, which inspires me to work harder every day. All of the stories of his childhood give me a better idea of what true hard work is, and how lucky I am to live the life I have. I will always be thankful and love my grandfather Joyle.