Enjoy my musings... written by me, Jessica, back in 2021. Life has changed away from pandemics to other world turmoil - and the daily stresses of life and uncertainties continue. However, whether it's 1905, 2021 or 2026- I still find these thoughts resonate with me and guide my daily life.
Working the land, using our hands, and creating something tangible is what brings both meaning and peace to our lives.
(Written by Jessica in 2021)
Growing up on a prairie farm, I relished the stories about my pioneer ancestors’ hardships as they settled the land. I remember details that shocked me: that the old outhouse (which leaned precariously) was the original bathroom before plumbing; that the upright piano was considered essential enough to transport across the continent to a new home.
Now in my mid-thirties and a mother to two young boys, I find myself feeling a deeper appreciation for what the women before me endured. Today, my family makes its home on the land those women settled when they arrived at a bare Central Alberta homestead in 1905.
I hope this home is not the only thing I share in common with my grandmother and great-grandmother: I see in their stories strength, determination, and an entrepreneurial spirit that I feel has carried through to me.
I struggle with the challenges of being a modern homemaker and mom, a working nurse and business owner, a wife, auntie, daughter, community volunteer, and friend. It’s easy to get overwhelmed on any given day thinking about the housework and how am I ever going to keep my kids healthy given the state of the environment, pandemics, the food they’re eating... never mind run a side-business and have a career.
In a split second, I imagine what life was like for my ancestors and feel a twinge of guilt.
When my ancestors came to Central Alberta in 1905, it was November and bitterly cold. My great-great grandfather set out first from their Oregon orchard to get a head start on their new home. My great-great grandmother, with 7 children in tow between ages 1 and 12, took a passenger train part way, then livery rig the remainder. Her husband wasn’t able to get a house built before the rest of the family arrived, so my great-great grandmother and the children arrived to a tent for a home inhabited by a newborn calf. I can just imagine her prayers and curses during those first -20 degree nights on the open prairie and their first two years of frost and failed crops.
My stresses seem to pale in comparison. I don’t have to stoke the fire in the middle of the night, split firewood or carry coal, empty a “thunder bucket” in the morning, or sew clothes and essentials for an entire large family. I just turn up the furnace, flush the toilet, and order what I need at the click of a button.
Thinking of what daily life was like four generations ago returns me to reality — and gives me perspective. Yet amidst my modern conveniences — our various machinery that are lined up in the yard for modern day farming, the unlimited Netflix movies that lull my boys to quiet, the smartphone that keeps me connected even while my nearest neighbour is miles away — I yearn for something simpler that my grandmothers had. (Maybe all the extra roles I carry today, make too much of a heavy weight? Maybe all the technology and stimulation is too much?)
The sense of accomplishment that comes from nurturing a sourdough boule into a warm, fragrant loaf that the family dives into. The satisfaction from growing a garden and harvesting the sweet corn and plump tomatoes. The comfort that comes from preserving enough food in the summer & fall to feed your family through the winter. These activities aren’t necessary for most families nowadays, but more and more I think it’s important for me to hold on to these things.
I like to imagine that my great grandmothers were thinking of me and their future great grandchildren when they were persisting through the low times. Where else could that resilience and hope for tomorrow have come from? What a lesson in love! I imagine that my great-great grandmother, much like me, would have had her moments of wanting to scream from the burden of everything that was demanded of her. We lived in different times, but we share the struggle and we share the land that feeds the pioneer spirit that now connects me to her.
Maybe the secret to handling the pressures and stresses back then, and today- is the joy and peace that comes from working on the land, using our hands, and being present with our family.
I want to embrace that pioneer spirit more. When I feel connected to my family’s traditions and the land, I feel a sense of calm that carries away the stress. I’m choosing to do tasks the way my great-grandmother did, and it helps me appreciate how hard they worked for what I now have. I make harvest meals from scratch and think of how it must have been to create the same meal for a threshing crew of 20 men. I have re-learned how to ferment cabbage for sauerkraut the way my great-great grandmother did with her prized cabbage using her crock brought from Germany. I have learned about the native plants our ancestors made good use of, and I forage rose hips and saskatoons to make jam. The old cream separator in our old wood shed beckons to be brought back into service. I imagine my female ancestors laughing as I fumble and toil over my first attempt at churning butter.
When I imagine those women looking forward, I remember that I, too, must keep my eyes on the future. I am thinking about the lives of my children and future grandchildren. As I write this while shelling fat peas, consoling a crying toddler, and tending to a stew on the stove, I feel at ease knowing I have the wisdom of pioneer women to help me find my way in motherhood in today's age.
From Jess in 2026 - I was inspired to share this personal article I wrote for the Trailblazher magazine after finishing the book "Finding Flora" by Elinor Florence which provoked more pondering about my women ancestors. This Canadian novel is about a woman who homesteads in Alberta in 1905, and against ALL the odds- she creates a beautiful life for herself. I highly recommend you read this book as it really made an impression on me.
But five years wiser since writing this piece- I can see how hard I was on myself with the demands of today's age and comparing to the past. I have given myself more grace as my generation has many hardships too, which doesn't make them any less important. I can appreciate what my family endured while homesteading, and I can also appreciate how hard I work now. Am I ever grateful to have more rights as a woman today and the choice to balance motherhood with creating my own company. Just as I look back at the women before me, I am looking ahead to the family that will come after me.
