Never Curse the Rain

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A Farm Boy’s Reflections on Water

Jerry Apps

A reflective and insightful exploration of water and its central place on our farms, in our recreation, and in our very livelihoods.

160 pages, 5.5 x 8
Hardcover: $22.95 | ISBN: 978-0-87020-794-5
Ebook: $15.99 | ISBN: 978-0-87020-795-2
Publication Date: 2/16/2017

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Description

Growing up on the family farm, Jerry Apps learned from a young age that water was precious. The farm had no running water; a windmill pumped drinking water for the small herd of cattle, and Jerry and his brothers hauled bucket after bucket of water for the family’s use. A weekly bath was considered sufficient. And when it rained, it was cause for celebration. Indeed, if ever the Apps boys complained about a rainy day spoiling their plans, their father admonished, “Never curse the rain,” for the family’s very livelihood depended upon it.

In Never Curse the Rain, Jerry Apps shares his memories of water, from its importance to his family’s crops and cattle to its many recreational uses—fishing trips, canoe journeys, and the simple pleasures of an afternoon spent dreaming in the haymow as rain patters on the barn roof. Water remained a touchstone throughout Jerry’s life, and in these pages, he explores the ways he found it helpful in soothing a troubled mind or releasing creativity. He also discusses his concerns about the future of water and ensuring that we always have enough. For, as Jerry writes, “Water is one of the most precious things on this planet, necessary for all life, and we must do everything we can to protect it.”

Author Bio

Celebrated storyteller and rural historian Jerry Apps was born and raised on a central Wisconsin farm. He was a former county extension agent and professor at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Apps authored more than fifty fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books, including Every Farm Tells a Story: A Tale of Farm Family Values, The Quiet Season: Remembering Country Winters, When the White Pine Was King, and Barns of Wisconsin, all published by the Wisconsin Historical Society Press.