I thought I would share this with you'all.Just a few minutes ago I looked outside the window and down the drive where my 1961 Ford 801 sits againts a backdrop of pine and a small brook. In it's fresh glory I studied the new paint, front grille, and design of the front differential of this 42 year old 4WD unit. Over the past three plus years I've had 4 tractors come and go and through each I had various levels of work that I completed. In contrast, the two tractors that I am most fond of are the 9N Whimpster and this new 42 year old 801 that has resulted from many long and late hours into the night applying my muscle and labor, putting up with obnoxious fumes, and covering myself with dirt, grime, and overspray. One week later my hands are still etched with the black lines of toil. Yep, it's a piece of old iron alright just sitting there. But, it's something more than old iron and new paint. In looking at this old tractor I see more than a machine I see the product of hard work, personality and vision; resurrecting the old into the new. As the layers of grease and paint were stripped and as the new paint was layered on, and as I toiled through mistake, error, and good fortune, resulting in this old iron sitting there with a fresh dusting of snow it speaks about me. Yep, it's a tractor alright. A lot of people don't care becuase they don't understand. But as one struggles through a challenging project, the satisfaction grows as the old is stripped and the new emerges. Sitting there, against the pines is a part of my vision, my labor, and my drive. Yep, it's an old tractor, but it's a part of me now. No one will fully understand, but I now see what causes me to just look and stare sometimes for minutes on end at that machine. Sometimes I walk out to the shed for no reason but to stare. But now I know I why. I'm looking at me, a reflection of something good from something rough. And although the world dat times drives me crazy and I have my moments of self doubt I can look at that tractor and know that something good came from a place within and I am thankful for that. Happy Thanksgiving to all you old iron lovers and to those who know the satisfaction of good work. 9N'er
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