[August 5, 2023] In the summer of 1966, just before High School, I helped a local potato farmer with his crops. I don’t remember if I ever had a dirtier job, yet I both enjoyed and hated working the fields because it was a cross between picking cotton and cleaning pigpens; it was smelly, sweltering, filthy, humid, and nasty. I never understood why and so I spent some time before writing this letter trying to unpack those circumstances that led to my mixed feelings about a job in the potato fields. I usually loved my many jobs, pretty much without exception.
Potato farmer said, “Hey Douglas, want a job? It’s tough and dangerous, and I need a man.” Me, “Yes sir, no problem, I’m in.” And then I asked what he needed me to do. I was willing to try any job as long as it wouldn’t get me in trouble. But picking potatoes? I thought machines did that; oh, they do and are called “potato scoopers.” Don’t you have any of the potato-picking machines? No problem. That’s where me and my buddies came in. Start tomorrow? My first task with the potato farmer was not picking potatoes but guarding the storage shed from rats. That’s right! I was a rat guard.
My tools? One dog. One 22 caliber rifle. One empty flour sack (for dead rats) for my new rat-hunting duties. The first rat I killed was a bit of a thrill. I was doing my job, practicing my shooting skills, getting rid of vermin, and getting paid. This is the kind of job any teenager would like. But, after the first couple of dead rats, killing them was more of a chore, but the job I signed up for was not about killing rates. Now picking potatoes is what I wanted to do; that is where the money is. To pick potatoes, I had to bend over, walking along each furrow in the overturned field, picking up potatoes. Then sacked potatoes are carried over the shoulders and stored in a shed. Rats love potatoes; thus, the importance of rat guard.
Several friends worked the fields with me, and the farmer never checked up on us. At the end of each day, he would gather all the sacked potatoes and haul them to market. His hands off approach was new to me – I didn’t care because I worked hard no matter what. A hard-working, honest, and good attitude always opened opportunities for me. I couldn’t understand friends who said there were no jobs. No jobs? It’s too easy to make an excuse for failure to find a job. And, then it means getting my butt up every morning, no matter how I feel, to get to work and do what I said I would do I could have made all sorts of excuses for not working and some of them are good excuses, but I remember not having many things as a kid and I was not going to look back and use that as a way to forfeit my duties today. My philosophy is absolutely no excuse for not getting at the job. Move forward, always. This takes courage.
At the end of each day, I was sweaty and tired. I was also happy because I got paid daily, usually five dollars in cash. It wasn’t the money that mattered that much to me, but being around my buddies and laughing at our own stupid jokes, poking fun at the potato farmer, calling each other nasty but funny names, chasing an occasional rat running across the field, lighting off firecrackers (to scare the rats), and generally hanging out. Some of my friends smoked cigarettes, and they could do so openly. I chewed bubble gum and threw the gum at my friends. We had a blast picking potatoes. And it was fun for us. However, I do recommend picking potatoes for any young teenager but be prepared to work your butt off.
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NOTE: For all Letters to My Granddaughter, go to this link here.
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Wow, nice letter. What I would like to know from Gen. Satterfield is how working for a potato farmer made him a better person, and specifically a better soldier. Toiling in the fields might be one of them. Just my thinking.
Great job my friend. Honest hard work never hurt anyone. You doing the job even though the farmer was not there watching you. This is great integrity The Scripture says whatever you do, do it as unto the Lord. I lived by this growing up into now .This help me to have an successful air force career. Prayfully your granddaughter reading this article will follow in your foot steps 🚶♀️ 👍
Wow, nice letter to your granddaughter, Gen. Satterfield. Looks like a book forming up here. This is one of your best series yet.
I agree, Bird Man. Nothing like the beginnings of a new book. What I highly recommend to those reading Gen. Satterfield’s blog is that you notice how these letters are changing over time, actually you might call it evolving. They are getting longer and more sophisticated. They are not written for a young child now but for a young adult. I wonder, if and when Gen. Doug satterfield puts all this in a book if he does a fix and makes all the letters targeted to a young adult or older teenager, when she is more likely to read and enjoy the content.
Hang in there, Gen. Satterfield and keep this series going. I love it.
Wow, super letter. ❤❤❤😎👍✌👀😍😁😊
Just a quick note for Gen. Satterfield that I’m truly enjoying your series on letters to your granddaughter. As I read them, I find them way way beyond entertaining. They each contain several gems of how to live a good life. This is beyond what you wrote in your recent book, “55 Rules for a Good Life,” which I enjoyed greatly. Please continue with your series and please put it into book form someday for us who love your writings. I would buy several and give away to my kids who will someday have kids (and my grandchildren). Keep up the service you are doing for us, Gen. S.
Mikka, yep, I agree. I surely would buy the book, even tho I can read it here in his blog. Cheeers!
Hi Gil, yes, I too would purchase the book and give it away to those who want to have children and eventually grandchildren. We have forgotten the old ways. Let us never really forget.
I only wish it were so. But in the meantime, we get treated to many of his letters to his granddaughter. Gen. Satterfield has created several mini-series in the past and I believe this one to be his very best. Leave a comment on his page on Amazon to show your support.
Potato farmer said, “Hey Douglas, want a job? It’s tough and dangerous, and I need a man.”
Home run!
Say you need a “man” and Gen. Satterfield as a little boy was all over it. I’m too sure many other boys would do the same in his time. Today, most of the boys are discouraged from working and that is the fault of their parents and community.
Be good to your friends, select your friends carefully (even if your parents help), be good to those who are important to you and respect others. And do not antagonize others unnecessarily (don’t poke them in the chest as Gen. Satterfield likes to say). These letters get to these important rules of life. And Gen.S. is the epitome of making things work out.
This quote says alot about your ideas here Gen. Satterfield and thank you in advance for writting these letters to your granddaughter.
“It wasn’t the money that mattered that much to me, but being around my buddies and laughing at our own stupid jokes, poking fun at the potato farmer, calling each other nasty but funny names, chasing an occasional rat running across the field, lighting off firecrackers (to scare the rats), and generally hanging out. ”
Now that says alot and says something we should all acknowledge and that there is more to work than money and more to living than having a job but having good friends.
Very true, Dale. I laughed out loud LOL when I read it.
Me too#. ha ha ha ha ha….. can you just imagine a young Gen. Satterfield making stupid jokes and rolling around in the potato fields with his buddies. Great times, I’m sure.
🤣🤣 Exactly why I read his blog daily.
Here it is Saturday morning and I am relaxing in my recliner drinking coffee, petting my big dog, reading this wonderful blog and thinking about how I can make life better for my kids. Your letters are giving me some great insight, especially they are something these kids can hold in their hands and say, “Hey, this is what my grandpappy was thinking.” A true treasure.
You got that right, Rowen. Thinking the same thing.
Another powerful letter to his granddaughter. Gen. S., please keep these letters coming our way and so I can read more about those stories of your youth.
Hi Gen. Satterfield, just a quick story. I was riding the bus into work yesterday and reading your latest book “55 Rules for a Good Life” and another passenger asked about it. He and I had a wonderful discussion about many of your “rules for a good life” and we laughed when we discussed some of your stories. Just wanted you to know that there are many of us out there who are huge fans and hope you publish another book soon.
Powerful ….. 👀👀👀👀👀👀
Just a quick note, Lady Hawk, to say that I agree with you. These many stories are building to the conclusion that our upbringing and how we acted when you, is a huge determinate of how we will turn out as adults. The ability to be a well-functioning, grounded, educated, happy and positive individual is built upon the building blocks that we put together as a kid. Great news for Gen. Satterfield’s granddauthter who will be reading these at some point. I hope he posts her picture some day.
POW!!!!! I think this is one of Gen. Satterfield’s main points.
He He, love it, mainer. Love this website and Gen. Satterfield’s books too. Get your copies today and leave a comment on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/55-Rules-Good-Life-Responsibility/dp/1737915529/
❤❤❤❤❤❤
Very best and most useful book I ever read.
“55 Rules for a Good Life”
Yes,, nailed it Danny. thanks!! Our upbringing does matter a great deal and don’t let others say otherwise.
Gen. Satterfield, all I can say is wow, great letter to your granddaughter this morning. 💖