HARVESTING THE GRAIN In autumn, the barley changed color from green to a golden yellow. Joe watched the process every day, for the crop must be ripe before the combine turned into the field. It cut the stalks of grain, which in turn, went through the mill. During the process, it separated the grain from the straw. Most of the straw was baled, for it was needed for bedding the animals during the winter. Occasionally, there was an abundance of straw, so, if it was not needed, it was spread on the field. In the early years, a Binder, pulled by three horses, cut the grain. When it became outdated, a combine was used because it was more efficient and accomplished everything at the same time. In our earlier years, Joe was content to have a binder fulfill the task. With time we had to resort to a combine for harvesting. In the beginning we hired someone to do it, but found we often had to wait a long time, which meant a late harvest, and the loss of grain, due to rain and wind storms. Finally Joe decided that it was time to invest in one of those monstrosities, known as a combine. He saw a second hand one listed in the Guardian, and decided to buy it. Kevin was elated when he and his father drove to Charlottetown to pick up the International 105 Combine. He was even more excited when Joe gave him the honor of driving it home all the way from Charlottetown . Joe had never driven a combine before and knew very little about one. It was a fall to remember, because it broke down more than it was in operation. After a few years, he traded it for a larger Massey Combine. Blair was delighted when this season approached, because he had the privilege of operating the combine. He was quite young when he won the right to be the driver. His father even gave in and let him miss the odd day from school. One Sunday, Blair tried to persuade his father that it was a perfect day to combine the barley. The bright sun and the north west wind made it an excellent day for harvesting. Joe never believed in working on Sunday. He felt that it was enough to work six days a week. After some persuasion, from Blair, Joe gave in and they left for the field. Blair was just making the first round when all of a sudden he heard "Bang"! 89