Do you remember: Morning Milking ?

Rise early in the morning

Five o'clock

Jam butty and mug of tea

Breakfast

 

Begin to prepare the dairy for mornings milking

Call in the cattle

They make their way across the field

Into the farmyard

Then into the milking shed

Take up their spaces

 

Warm milk runs through the cooler

Into the waiting churn

A second churn awaits

To replace the full one

 

Milking over

Turn out the cattle

Back to the field

They know the routine

 

Clean up the milking shed

And dairy

Place the churns ready for collection

Back into the farmhouse for a cooked breakfast

 

Reviews

[barleygirl]

This is a great experiential piece of writing for all the millions of people who never get to experience the country life. You paint it literally & straightforward, just as if we're going thru the actual motions. I like the way you show the cows as being a partner in the dance, since I love that about the furry friends, the way they get into a groove with what we want them to do! *smile* Fondly Margie

[Wild Rose]

Thank you Margie
You are so correct - Yes I did actually do the morning milking - with uncle - I was about 12
Learned to test the teats for TB; take a drop from each teat; put the milk through the cooler - pinch a drop of warm milk
Cousins came to stay with us in the town
Busses had upstairs- Whos bed was upstairs? they asked
Who puts the milk in those bottles ours come in a jug

[Coyote Poetry]

Old fashion life, few shall know. In Michigan, less farms in Michigan now. Nice flow of thoughts took me back to the life of a farmer. Thank you Wild Rose for sharing the amazing poetry.
Coyote

[Wild Rose]

It was a holiday on uncles farm - I was about 12 YO
Yes this way of farming is lost here - BUT I think still exists in some parts of the old Soviet Union
Harvesting machines now move in and clear the field leaving only the chaff

We lived in an industrial town then > I have another few in this series . Been looking for suitable pictures

[Coyote Poetry]

We need to remember the days of old. A wonderful write.

[Neville]

I really enjoy your 'Do You remember' series my friend, they are such delightful reminders of days of yore.... write on...... Neville

[Wild Rose]

I have a few more > reminders for us oldens and an eye opener for the youngsters who think they have a hard life
We didn't find it HARD it just had to be done
I sometimes think of the miners in Buttermere & Borrowdale who walked miles to and from the mine

[Neville]

Aye them's were the days me Granddad told me all about em...... N

[Wild Rose]

I am writing (slowly) about our family (just rewriting the opening chapter ) What I have so far is on here before WWII and "The Departure" when dad left to join the RAF >> "Harry Worth Story of wartime childhood"
Got a Remember when 'School Dinners' found an old photo on line > 'I don't like this milk - So I drank heirs'

[Neville]

chuckling away here.....

[sette]

fresh milk every morning to start the day right... simple pleasures bring forth a lot of happiness

[Wild Rose]

Yes warm fresh milk > A holiday to remember for a town kid

[Carla]

This is a wonderful poem, I love the reality of it and the description of the task. I didn't grow up in the country, but this piece gives a better understanding of it

[Wild Rose]

A holiday on uncles farm in Warwickshire > Some more in this line and I have found some old pictures

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

love this Rose i never have been on a farm but always wanted to grow up in the country
this was real and good
what a great way to have a childhood there.
loved it

[Wild Rose]

We were on holiday on uncles farm - we lived in an industrial town
I have more to follow

[‘Thoughts In Time..]

What a wonderful start to s day I can just smell feel the atmosphere- when I was growing up we had a friend that lived out in country across the river from dairy farm- we usedto get up walk across river go milk cows by hand- never forget that- small things that bring joy🌹

[Wild Rose]

A holiday on uncles farm - we lived in an industrial town - streets of houses

[Chris Shaw]

I like this simplicity of this poem, taking us into the milking shed, early in the morning, for the cows to be milked. I always wanted to be a farmer's wife in my teens. Never met a farmer sadly. Good to get a hearty cooked breakfast after milking the cows. All that energy needed for the rest of the day's hard work.

Chris

[Wild Rose]

It was uncles farm and two weeks holiday - Away from our home in an industrial town

[Iam-me]

A really nice interesting poem. About the dairy farm and his cattle. You never think of all the hard work and labour that goes into your fresh milk. You buy at the supermarket.

[Wild Rose]

Thank you Dawn
I was 12 on uncles farm for a holiday
Methods have changed now -more intricate machinery
My Cousins wanted to know who put the milk into the bottles > Theirs came in a jug straight from the farm dairy

[Iam-me]

Sounds lovely. Living on a farm. And in a jug straight to the kitchen. Makes me drool thinking of that milk. :)

[Einstein Noodle]

i like the simple declaratory lines ... it adds to the setting and life on the farm ..down to earth and connected with routine and the cows. i grew up in upstate NY but we had regular vacations back the to Heartland to visit family. My favorite place was on the farm with my cousins ... helping them with chores ... the farm had a hand pump under the kitchen sink for "running" water ... my aunt and uncle and nine cousins .. two of the boys were close to my age so we always hung out and it was their chores i helped with .. one of which was the milking ..i was always amazed and a bit charmed how those cows all new what to do and where to put their big necks and heads ... waiting patiently as we went stall to stall closing the stanchions ... some of my best memories ... your title asking the questions drew me right in ... my answer is yes! ;)
E.

[Wild Rose]

Thank you EN
Times and methods are different now
This was 70 years ago on uncles farm
His milking parlour was the best in those days newly modernised through government scheme to aid soldiers get work after WWII

[Einstein Noodle]

i read an article and saw pics of a newer system completely computerized ..there is one in Canada and one being built in the US ... the cows are all tagged so they can be scanned when they enter the stall.... about 60 on a round turning table ... the cow and the amount of milk produced is kept track of and they are automatically released when finished ..really amazing technology ... my cousins and i milked about 12 cows by hand ;) you can check out the system here if you like:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kE2nFTZ5DIE

[Wild Rose]

I was taught to hand milk on that holiday

[Gee]

Brought up in a small village with a couple of dairy farms. This brought memories of playing in the old sheds and barns flooding back and the unforgettable smell of muck, still love that smell.
Thank you for a trip back in time

[Wild Rose]

Thank you Gee - holiday on uncles farm 70 years ago - I was 12 YO
Then back to the industrial northern town
Glad I had my cycling to take me into the countryside

[Gee]

My pleasure