My new life in Burgenland: Wheat, So Vital & Beautiful, How Could You Not Like It?

Thursday, 26 June 2014

Wheat, So Vital & Beautiful, How Could You Not Like It?

The basics of life...

Luckily I got there just in time. The wheat slasher is doing the rounds. No, not some escapee from an asylum but an escapee from a barn. The farmers are starting to harvest the wheat. It is just at its most beautiful and attractive, but we need to use the wheat for more than its looks.

As I was transferring the photos it occurred to me that this wheat is vital for us all. This colourful bit of canvas is the main ingredient for cakes, breads and so much more. We should really go back to the old ritual of giving thanks for the harvest. When did we learn to take it all for granted? We want bread...we go to the nearest shop.

One of the ladies I go and have coffee with, told me how during the War ( the second one ) the only food they had to eat was what they grew and reared themselves. They planted a field of wheat
( and obviously much more ) and this harvest would get them through the Winter. In fact, once the wheat was harvested by hand,as only some had a horse to help with the harvesting, they had to take it five kilometers to the mill. Once it was milled, they would put the sacks of flour ( or rather wealth ) in the attic where they had wooden containers. This would get the through the winter. Makes you think, doesn't it?

The other day, I stumbled across a reminder:

If you ate today, thank a farmer.

You know, when you see it as stark as this, it takes a few minutes to get the whole punchline. No, even the supermarkets would be empty without farmers. Without farmers, we aren't, pure and simple. Farming should be the most revered and well paid profession there is.