From dusk till dawn,
they never complained.
They knew their job,
they suffered their pain.
Baring children in a tar paper shack.
Boiling clean water on a cookstove of black.
Only to awake the very next day.
to feed the chickens and help with the hay.
Never a moment of rest did they know.



They shoveled a path and melted the snow.
to give all their young ones,
their bath for the week.
Then put them together to bed 
with a kiss on the cheek.



Yes, times were hard,
and pennies were few.
But they somehow managed
to go out for a few.
To sneak in a drink
whenever they can,
Only to land in a ditch full of sand.
Yes, there was some explaining to do.
but a laugh and a giggle came from the two



Yes,  Grandma McQuoid and Grandma Hopkins
were two of a kind.
Their days were full of
rhythm and rhymes
and some tears and laughter.
The smiles on their faces
brought many a laughs.
Their friends and family 
all loved them
right to the last.



It's funny in a way
they all left this life together 
within a year of each other
and I bet ya
if you really listen to the silence
you can still heard their chuckles 
under God's great green earth.

God rest their beautiful souls ...




© Brenda Randall
2003

Picture taken at Edwin & Leah McQuoid's 50th Anniversary

Porquis Agric. Hall
Viana, Mrs. Cashmore, Leda Besaw, Lila Hopkins, Mrs. Berlinghoff