Sherman

Here's me and my friend Sherman.  He's technically my "landlord" I suppose, but I think of him as an honorary Grandpa, or a funny old curmudgeon that I enjoy visiting.  I first met Sherman on May 2, 2015, the day we arrived from Nova Scotia & Dad, Jon and I went to pick up keys for the farm.  I had heard lots about him my whole life, but I don't think we had ever met.  Dad and Sherman became friends long ago through Dad's business, and as Sherm has gotten older with his "damn legs don't work anymore" Dad has increasingly been a help with selling land and equipment, fixing things, cleaning up the farm, etc.  As Sherman says, "Paul has been a real good friend to me".

In early 2015 we decided we needed a change to be able to achieve our goals.  We decided to move to Manitoba and join Brown Sugar Produce, Mom's business which was in need of a succession plan.  I didn't want to live in Brandon.  Then I looked at places in Brandon online and I REALLY didn't want to live in Brandon!  We had a few leads on places that friends rented out, but nothing panned out until a couple of weeks before we arrived.  Dad was visiting Sherman and got to thinking about the recently sub-divided farmyard section at Myrah Farm.  It was divided from the rest of the section because Sherman still had all his stuff there and also wasn't ready to part with it, and it didn't add any value to the farmland parcel & appealed to a different market.  Dad helped Sherman sell the farmland earlier that spring before we decided to move.  Finally, as Sherm tells it: "Paul said, 'the kids are coming and need somewhere to live, and you need someone on the farm', and I said, 'Yes, you just go ahead and move them right in, Paul'".

There's friends who are acquaintances or contacts or business networks, and then there's true friends.  The kind you know are always looking out for your best interest and whom you trust completely.  That's the kind of friendship Dad and Sherman have.  Sherman didn't know us, but he knew Paul well enough to know that he could trust his beloved farm was in good hands.

So, after a few days getting the systems running in the house we moved in.  I remember walking around the farm in utter disbelief that we could be living somewhere so beautiful.  We decided on a rental amount with Sherman and then eventually drew up an offer to purchase.  I remember being a little nervous to drop off the first few rent cheques to his house in town, but I would come in and sit down and visit Miss Kitty and Sherman would regale me with stories from the farm.  They're often the same stories, but occasionally there's a new one and it's like finding an easter egg!  I'm grateful for the overlap on our property between Sherman and us.  This way, we can learn so much more about how things came to be and what has happened here.  I even got to see some old photos of the farm, back when there was a duck pond, the barn was a glorious freshly painted red, they kept some geese, the Continental was shiny new-- utter gold when you're someone who cares about a place and it's history.

Last summer Sherman would come out to the farm occasionally and if we were home he'd pop in for coffee or lemonade.  We'd ask him things like "how did you paint that design on the ceiling?" and "did you make that live trap yourself?" and "what did you use that building for?".  Getting the answers to these questions straight from the owner is priceless.  He delights in seeing us make improvements and he loves to tell us about the history of the place.  Of course he also has his quirks-- that's why I love old curmudgeons!  (Seriously, I may have a problem... Give me a grumpy old man and I'll melt his heart instantly and fall in love with him, myself, too.  I think it's because my own Dad is such a grumpy bugger, it's the only kind of love I understand!).  Once you understand that everything in Sherman's life is how he remembers it when he bought it, it makes it easier to understand his perspective.  The Continental has sat out years, is infested with mice and probably barely has a useable part on it... But we saved that one, AND the other one he kept around for parts (which had a tree growing through the engine block) because "that's a good car, someone might want to restore it someday" (& often the "someone" is 87 year old Sherman himself).  I hope someone does!  I hope they get it back to it's original glory and love driving around a big white indestructible boat with suicide rear doors and the coolest dashboard I've ever seen.

I LOVE Sherman's perspective.  At 87 years old, why not remember everything when it was at it's best?  Put on your rose colored glasses, sit in a comfy chair with your cat, and relive the glory days.

When I found out Sherman was on his way to the fire a couple weeks ago, all worry about the

smouldering pile of shit in front of me faded away and I worried about ol' Sherm, adrenaline pumping, driving his big shiny red truck out to the farm.  When he arrived on the scene, Jon and I met him at his truck to lend assistance, but the first thing Sherman did was say "Oh, Teri" and give me a big hug.  In tough times like this, I'm even more glad for Sherman.  He has loved this place since 1972 and I can't imagine how tough it must be to see the devastation of those buildings.  It's tough for me and I only had 1 year to get attached. 

I look forward to Sherman seeing the evolution of the place.  He'll probably grumble about a few things, and that's likely advice best heeded as it comes out of experience.  He'll be able to point out a different perspective when we site our new buildings, being that he worked in this farmyard for 45 years.  He'll appreciate seeing things like the upcoming leveling of the yard more than we'll ever be able to appreciate-- it will soon fade in our memories that the farmyard was ever not level.  In Sherman's mind, the shop, quonset, and beautiful barn will live on forever, regardless of what replaces them, and that makes my heart smile!

I am so happy to have Sherman in my life.  I try to visit him at least once every week, and he's always so happy to see me it makes me excited to return.  He looks forward to our farm vegetables and my eggs from hens raised at the farm.  He loves to hear our stories and he loves to share stories about the farm.  I've missed visiting my Gran since she passed away last summer, so Sherman has been able to fill some of that void for me also.  He asked me a couple weeks ago if I would take Missy Kitty back to the farm to live when he's gone, I said Sure, but you're not going anywhere anytime soon!

Bye for now!