Labor Day Meant Tobacco Harvest

Across the Fence #565


It’s Labor Day weekend as I write this. When I think of Labor Day, I think of tobacco harvest. When other families headed for lakes and campgrounds for the 3-day weekend, our family headed for the tobacco fields. We raised up to 12 acres of tobacco for many years. We couldn’t harvest all that tobacco by ourselves, so Dad always hired extra help. I remember they get paid one dollar an hour, plus dinner and coffee mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Depending on how many hours they worked, that was only $8-$10 per day. We didn't get paid anything for helping harvest at home. Dad said, “You get your room and board.” We liked it when our tobacco was all in the shed and we could help neighbors harvest their tobacco. People liked to hire us because they knew we were experienced at harvesting tobacco and weren’t afraid to work. When we worked for neighbors at least we got paid. That was the only time we made any money.

Even after we were off the farm, married, and had our own jobs, we were expected to come home to the farm over the three-day Labor Day weekend to help harvest tobacco. That was tough because I had a desk job, five-days a week. It certainly didn't prepare me for tobacco harvest. That was hard work even when you were in shape from working on the farm everyday all summer. I really dreaded Labor Day and tobacco harvest in those days.

I usually ended up hauling tobacco from the field and hanging it in the shed. One year when it was really hot and humid, I got heat exhaustion and almost fell out of the peak. We were hauling with two wagons and Dad decided  we'd hang the entire peak before going back out to the field. We were hanging in a six-bent shed and I had the peak almost filled when I began to feel weak and dizzy. It was a very high shed and it was really hot up there. I was sweating bullets as the saying goes. I knew I had to get down before I fell down. I barely made it to the ground. I was really lucky I didn't fall out of the peak. I drank some water from the Mason jar we had in the shed. Dad and one of the other guys helping us haul, went to the nearby barn and came back with pails of water that they poured over me to cool me down. I felt weak for the rest of the day and was relegated to the spearing crew. I considered that a job for the old-timers, but at least it was better than cutting and piling tobacco. 

Dad hanging tobacco

If you’ve hung tobacco you know its heavy, hard work. But it was also the job I liked. It was a challenge and there was an element of danger involved. It took some daring and strength to balance on wobbly poles, high off the ground, while lifting laths loaded with heavy tobacco plants and hanging them on poles. 

This story has become a family catch phrase to “be careful” and has become an annual tradition to use in a story. Dad would yell up at us, ”Check the poles so you don't fall down and kill yourself.” He yelled up to us countless times as we climbed around in the tobacco shed, hanging tobacco during harvest and while taking it back down after it was cured. 

I wish I was still in shape to climb up in a shed, balance on those narrow poles, and hang tobacco. My question is, would anyone work like that for a dollar an hour these days? Now that dollar won't even get you a cup of coffee. Times have really changed. 

I mentioned in last week’s column that I was going to have tests and an MRI on September 8th. That’s today, as I write this column. I spent seven and a half hours at Gundersen Clinic today. When all was said and done, the doctors had encouraging news for us. They had warned us ahead of time that the type of tumor I have, Glioblastoma, doesn’t always show much improvement after the first round of treatments. I had also heard reports of how aggressive this tumor is. I was expecting the worst, but hoping for the best. I know I’ve had a lot of people putting out positive thoughts and prayers for me. I thank you all. I received good news today, and it’s very encouraging. The tumor ‘s growth has slowed down and the size of the tumor has actually decreased. The inflammation around the tumor that was pushing on my brain and causing a split down the middle, as they showed me on the scans, has almost been eliminated. Both my radiation and oncology doctors were very pleased and surprised with the results so far. Linda and I were very happy with the results too. Now we continue on with the second phase of treatment. I will have a double doze of chemo for the next five months. I made it through he first month without too many problems, so they have decided to increase the dosage. The next five months will be interesting. I hope the outcome is just as good as the first four months.

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