How to harvest barley by hand
- lay out large tarp or blanket
- cut down dried barley with round serrated knife
- carry in bundles about 10x your girth to tarp
- wack the heads off with a stick, give stalks to donkeys
- wack the heads with the eucalyptus stick until all grains have fallen off
- wack at this pile until grains fall to bottom of mound
- use thorny branch to brush off unwanted huskings
- toss the grains to winnow the rest of the unwanted huskings away and leave you with only barley
- preferably, make beer (please, for the love of pachamama, do not make chicha)
My family bought another calf that is less into suckling my fingers and more into head butting me in the knees until I bring her more buckets of milk. Its all fun and games when she gets me from behind, but all 150 lbs of her stopped our laughter when she got me in the kneecaps today and sent my head to images of emergency donkey rides and health post beds.
My host mother had to attend to “women farm-workers” club while my host father was still tossing barley. So, I sat in the kitchen, alone, with only the sound of the wind, as I pressed cheese for about an hour. The thing with making cheese, is there is no doing it quickly and well at the same time. As the cows milk warmed my submerged hands all I could think about was how I can never live again without doing this; without whacking fodder, without slobbery bull kisses, without hens wondering in my room for their breakfast, without doing by hand. So much about this life just feels so gratifying.
As round after round of kids came for homework help I imagined living here. Scary.
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