The Rural Voice, 1983-06, Page 17f1
The day
my world
was taken away
Fiction by Angela Coultes, 13
"Mom why are they doing this?" I asked. "i
don't know dear," she replied.
Today they took my world away from me. I
lived in this house all my life, now someone I
have never met is coming to take everything
away, 1 said to myself, trying not to cry.
"Sandra, the people for the auction are
here." Mother said.
"Coming." 1 yelled, my voice cracking.
1 walked down the stairs, my arms and legs
felt weak.
We were going to stay awhile just to keep
things going smoothly. The auctioneers started.
They were selling our combine. My Dad's face
was as white as a ghost.
1 ran to my room. l looked around at the
emptiness. My mom redecorated it, now it's
gone; 1 couldn't help it I had to cry. My mother
came up the stairs with the banker; she heard
my sobs and came to comfort me. She told the
banker how l felt. "1 know how you feel." he
said.
"No, you don't. You never had everything
you ever worked for taken away by one
person!" 1 snapped back. I ran out of the
room, tears falling like buckets of rain.
1 slowed my pace to a walk. I was at the
creek. The water was babbling as if it were
telling me good-bye forever. I fell down to my
knees, my head spinning with confusion over
everything that had happened. The bees and
the birds were telling me this would be the last
time I would be here. 1 stayed there thinking of
times that were happy and sad but today 1 knew
I would never forget. Secretly, I knew part of
me would always be here.
I stumbled up the path towards home weak
and tired. The auction was over and everything
was over and everything was sold. 1 knew today
they took my world away from me.
Farmer's
Nightmare
Lori Coneybeare, 18
18
" Lynn, the barn's on fire," he
screamed, panic-stricken.
The presence of his tears could be noted
in his voice. If ever there was a time for a
grown man to cry, this was the moment.
Five o'clock Wednesday afternoon.
" The Price is Right" commenced as •
usual. Lynn was broiling porkchops for
supper as the children watched television.
A normal weekday evening. Lynn had left
her meal preparation for only a few short
minutes to take care of some cleaning
upstairs.
The terrified scream was the pilot light
of an evening never to be erased from the
minds of those nearest to the tragedy.
A pyramid of flames soared high as the
barn boards reached out in vain attempts
to grasp the failing backbone of fourteen
inch square beams. Molten metal
streamed into the cement -walled cauldron
from the seething corrogated steel roof-
ing. The straw in the upper portion of the
barn was disintegrated within a matter of
seconds, but in those few short seconds,
the straw had managed to fuel the fire
enough to constitute a feeling of helpless-
ness for the possibility of saving the barn.
In the lower level of the barn, more
than three hundred and fifty feeder pigs
were engulfed in a holocaust of turmoil.
Death came almost instantaneously.
After what seemed like hours, but
actually was a matter of minutes, the once
proud structure was reduced to cement
walls retaining a massive fireball. Firemen
worked with great anticipation towards
the moment when the blaze would be
extinguished. Neighbours busied them-
selves with the making of sandwiches for
the consumption of the tiring firefighters
and also for the family upon which the
tragedy was bestowed.
Later that evening, when the fire had
been subdued considerably, the firemen
packed up their water trough and headed
for home. A round-the-clock vigil was
kept by some of the family members to
ensure that the remaining " hot spots"
would not burst into fresh eruptions of
flames.
As the morning dawned, the mass of
metal gates welded to the corpses of the
herd of swine could be seen more vividly
than during the night before.
A battle had been fought. The victory
was not in the hands of the farmer that
night, the night that the barn burned
down.
BRINDLEY
AUCTION
1/4 mile east
of Dungannon
Over 30
Combines
Gleaner
F, E-3, C-2, E & A-2
MF 410 diesel
3 MF 410 gas
2 MF 510 gas
5 MF 300 gas
Case 800 gas
JD 6600 gas
New Holland 995
Diesel Combine
SPECIAL
Bush Hog Roto Mower
Cash & Carry - 8575.
EQUIPMENT
OF ALL KINDS
UPCOMING
SALES
SATURDAY, JUNE 18
Brindley Sale Yard
10 a.m. sharp
Auction Sale
at Don Doupe's
Equipment
21/am. east of
Kincardine
on Highway *9
Saturday, June 4
10 a.m.
Auctioneer
Gordon H. Brindley
For further
Information, call
519-529-7625
519-529-7970
THE RURAL VOICE, JUNE 1983 PG. 15