Family Farm Friday # 17: Picking Peas

"In my Father's house there are many mansions..." ~ John 14:2


A great song by Andy Griggs is one of my favorite ideas of what Heaven is like.

If heaven was an hour, it would be twilight
When the fireflies start their dancin on the lawn
And suppers on the stove and mammas laughin
And everybodys workin day is done

If heaven was a town it would be my town
On a summer day in 1985
And everything I wanted was out there waiting
And everyone I loved was still alive

I don't know what Heaven will be like really, but I think it's pretty interesting to think about what it would be like if this song is accurate.


I've had lots of great chapters in my life--it might surprise you that my Heaven-song idea is not the OSU football staduim covered in orange t-shirts. It's not a boat cruise in San Francisco. It's not touring Europe (although the countryside in Switzerland is probably a close second!). Nope....instead, my Heaven-song idea is a black eyed pea field just up the road. I've said before growing up on a family farm shaped me, apparently that included shaping my idea of Heaven.


When I was a kid, my grandma lived next door. Gran, Little Brother and I were like the Three Amigos. We would go check cows, drink windmill water, and visit the neighbors constantly. Gran always kept a little pickup for us to take around on our adventures. Gran had lots of friends we would visit--Ralph and Faye would have great stories and were the best at helping with science projects, Sandy and Lee were always happy to buy whatever cookies or fruit or whatever else us kids were selling, and Wanda always had candy for us when we went trick-or-treating.


But I think Gran's best friend was Aunt Jean. She wasn't actually my aunt, but she was always Aunt Jean to us. She lived right up the road from our house and always had the best snacks when we went to visit. Homeade cakes and candy....and what I've always called "Aunt Jean candies" (the little mini hershey bars--you know with mini Mr. Goodbars and Rice Crips and what not). No matter how long we'd been there, she'd always say, without fail, "I sure wish ya'll wouldn't rush off." She also had a great orchard and two fields--one of black eyed peas and one of corn. This is where my Heaven idea comes from.


Of all of my childhood memories, for some reason, this is probably the most vivid. We were there, in our shorts and irrigation boots, picking peas in the sun. Gran had her big straw hat and Aunt Jean was wearing her apron. Things were simple and easy and we were just picking peas.


I don't know what Heaven will be like, but I sort of hope Andy Griggs is onto something.