Field at Sunrise

by Elmer Prather, our very special guest blogger

My latest puzzle is a 1000-piece titled Field at Sunrise by Gregg & Company. To spend time putting a puzzle together, I must have a connection to it. My connection to this puzzle is the old tractor in the puzzle picture sitting under a large Oak tree. This old farm tractor reminded me of the 1948 Allis Chambers tractor my brother and I purchased for our Dad when he retired. It reminded me of our Dad’s tractor since the tractor in the puzzle is also a late 1940s model Allis Chambers.

 Before he got his tractor, Dad used a five-horsepower garden tiller to tend his garden every year. He always had a great garden and even though it was small, it produced a lot of produce, some of which he sold to people passing by his home upon seeing the sign at the end of his driveway. The sign read, Vegetables for Sale.

This was a small operation and now that Dad had more time on his hands, we felt that an old tractor was just what he needed. We found the tractor and the implements to go with it in a magazine titled The Farmers and Consumers Market Bulletin. They have been publishing this magazine since 1917.

He was a “happy camper” when we drove the old tractor down his driveway on a late Sunday afternoon and handed him the key. Dad used the tractor and implements we purchased to increase the size of his garden and as such was able to sell a lot more produce.

Pictures tell a story and the story I saw when I first viewed this puzzle picture was a scene of an old farmstead with a beautiful sun setting over the old farm tractor. The farmer who owned this farm raised sheep as evidenced by there being eight of them standing and laying around the tractor, looking as if they were posing for their picture to be taken. To the rear of the tractor is a Border Collie. This breed of dog is used to protect and move sheep around. The large barn in the background with two large grain silos beside it indicated the farmer must raise cows as well as horses and sheep.

Gregg & Company produced the puzzle picture and I just love their work. I have put about a dozen of their puzzles together and I loved watching each of them come alive while putting them together. They are an incredibly talented group of artists and I appreciate their work.

Field at Sunrise by Greg Giordano