molasses making

me standing in front of the stripped cane 1965
molasses making is very hard work-moms cousin from Washington State-Phillis Wright-2008
Marvin Wright our photographer for 2008-Phillis' husband 2008
Phillis skimming the green juice-2008

grandpa scrapping the pan 1977 (NOYE: the silver bucket we used)
grandpa's watchful eye 1977
grandpa, grandma and dad feeding felicia molasses 1977
1965-richard, john, grandpa john and me (that truck is setting in hurdland)
ME-1965-one bad hombre

everyone setting around watching the molasses cook 1965
grandma crawford and david straining the molasses-1977
grandpa and grandma crawford christmas 1977 (probably the last picture of them together)
grandpa feeding the fire 1977
grandpa, dad and me 1977

molasses cooking in 1977
dad and splitting wood in 1977
dad and I cutting wood in 1977
a look at dad thirty years apart 1977-2007
Bobby 1977

1965 molasses coming up
Grandpa Crawford's watchful eye 1977
Green molasses ready to cook 1977
me throwing pummies in 1977
the is ready-1977

the boss of the BOG BOSS (mom) 2008
Aunt Glinda moving the juice from the mill to be strained for the second time 2008
feeding the mill 2008
ME.....in 1965
scraping the pan 2008

pouring the juice into the pan to start cooking it into molasses 2008
the fire keeper...lighting the fire to start the cook 2008
raw cane juice being sqeezed from the cane stocks and the first straining 2008
Uncle Gerald, Aunt Connie, me and Bailey 2008
What the cane looks like after being smashed 2008

youngest brother bobby and his son Pierce, The finally straining into the cooling containers-2008
Frog Eye stage 2008
it's coming up 1977 scraping the pan 2008
skimming the molasses as it cooks. 2008

Below is an article I wrote for the Manor Care Nursing home about two or three years ago. It's molasses making time once again and I'm home for it instead of in Afghanistan (where I have been the last two years). But, I may not get to finish this year out. I may be headed to Texas on a security detail thanks to hurricane Ike. I thought you might like to read it and see some of the photo's from 1965 to present. My Aunt Glinda told me that she thought my grandparents would have been proud of the job we did. Well, I know they are and I know they were with us. If you looked around, listened, smelled and felt what was going on, then one knows they were there.... enjoying the festivities with the rest of us....and smiling.

I have changed the article a little to bring it up to date.

RE-LIVING THE PAST
I was asked by Mrs. Horn if she could write a story about my mom and dad reliving or bringing back the past by making molasses. After thinking about it for awhile, I decided that it could only really be told by someone that had actually been through the process and knew the history. So, I decided to write it myself. I hope you enjoy it.

TIME......It passes so quickly and we don’t even realize it most of the time. We are just kids and then we have kids and then they have kids and then you realize it......YOUR GETTING OLD!
It has been thirty-one (31) years since the last batch of molasses was cooked at my grandparents farm. Three generations were there then and now we are lucky enough to have three generation with us now. My youngest brother was only two or three years old. Now he has a son five years old and a daughter turning two. I have been in law enforcement twenty-eight years and for the last two years, I’ve been over seas. MY kids are grown.....HOW QUICKLY TIME PASSES. It sure doesn’t seem like it has been that long ago.
In 2004, while I was overseas, dad started talking about planting sugar cane and cooking a batch of molasses so his kids and his grand kids could see at least once before he was unable to do it at all. I guess that was all it took to peak the interest of everyone old enough to have an interest. SO.......with that, the LONG process started. The field was plowed for the first time in probably 31 years and the cane was planted. That was the easy part, it just had to grow now. In the fall and under the watchful eye of dad, the cane was about ready and equipment now needed to be found, cleaned and readied. My brothers, sister and the rest of the family started the three month long process of helping dad dig the old cane mill out of the ground and resetting it, building the new furnace, finding the belt that went from the tractor to the mill and cleaning it up, fixing the tractor so it would run, making new strainers, finding new containers for the juice, finding the existing stripping and corn knives and then.... trying to get the pan down off of the barn wall, where it has hung since the last time it was used in 1977. I’m not to sure, but I think I helped grandpa hang it. Dad told me that grandma had treated it with beef towler to keep it from rusting. After getting it down and turning it over to look at it, dad said "after all these years, the towler is still on the pan." With a puddy knife and elbow grease they started scraping it out and after awhile, the shinny bottom started to show through. Excitement was building and molasses was going to be a reality once more.
When dad said the cane was ready.... the work began. The family all showed up (except for me, who was still overseas) to help get it stripped of it leaves, then the heads were cut off and then the long, tall stalks of cane were cut down, loaded into the wagons and trucks and brought in from the field. The old tractor was fired up and driven down to the mill, the belt was hooked up and with crossed fingers and breathes held, the power take off was engaged and the mill started turning. With everything working... they started feeding the cane into the mill and started watching the juice run into the pans for the first time in 31 years.
Mom and dad wrote me and said that over 70 people were there to watch. Barbeque grills were brought down to the cook area, my brother set up the cider press and made fresh apple cider and about eight hours later........the FIRST batch was ready to come off the fire. I felt like I was there from looking at all the pictures mom was sending me and the letters telling about everything going on. It brought back a lot of memories of when I was a young boy. Grandpa and his straw hat, corn cob pipe, overalls and a stone jug of cider and Grandma straining the cane juice. The apple cider we use to make, the smell of the molasses cooking and TIME that has past by.
Well, I home this year and getting to enjoy the process of molasses making for myself once more. It is really nice to be able to spend time with the family and friends while the molasses is cooking. So in closing I guess what I am trying to say is, DON’T LET TIME PASS YOU BY! Make time to spend with family and friend while they are here....oh....and smell the molasses cooking.

Afghanistan

Forward Operating base Ma'Sum Ghar (MSG)
Layka and I enjoying our morning coffee together

me and my boys at Spin Buldak
sniper-Elliott

Camel Spider
Duco in his vehicle
Monitor Lizard

Caves in southern Afghanistan

Afghan bowls made from rosewood.

Afghanistan clothing allowed me to move freely among the Afghan population with my interpreter

Stock piled weapon inside Alexander's castle

Alexander the Greats castle in the of Qalot in east central Afghanistan near the

Pakistan border

For those of you whom do not know me, my name is Hollis Crawford. I have been in law enforcement for twenty-eight years. In that time I also trained and handled K-9's, which leads me to Afghanistan.

In 2004 I contracted to a company that was providing explosive detection dogs to the military in Afghanistan. Once I arrived at Kandahar Air Field, I was assigned a dog, trained with that dog for a week in order to get certified and then was assigned to work missions with the various military forces at Kandahar, The U.S., Canadian, Romanian, etc. and later was assigned to a F.O.B. (forward operation base) called Lagman, located in east central Afghanistan near the Pakistan border. My duties there were pretty simple......check every vehicle entering into the FOB. This is where I also worked the U.S. E.O.D. teams (explosive engineers). They would receive intel on a weapon cash and I would take my dog and go with them to find it. Once it was located, they would either B.I.P it (blow in place) or we would load it up and stock pile it inside Alexander the Greats castle, which was a very interesting piece of history.

Afghanistan's history has been written in war. It has been fought over for the trade routes for silk and other products coming from other countries as well as for military positions, the most recent being the war on terror.

A lot of the country has been mined for various reasons. To protect farm ground, water sources, electric facilities or to keep people out of areas such as training camps as well as the above mentioned locations. It is estimated that 1200 afghan people, per week, are either killed or maimed from land mines. Most being woman and children going to and from water and crop sources. We are clearing these mine fields as quickly as we can. But it is a very slow and difficult task, do to the fighting.

We are re-building schools and building medical facilities. We are now teaching reading, not only the children, but the elders as well. We are also providing medical treatment to them. Some receiving it for the first time in their life. These are some of the things that the Taliban did not want and had outlawed during their rein, along with T.V., radio, kite flying and electricity. The Taliban wanted the Afghan people sick and uneducated in order to get them to strap a bomb vest on and kill as many people as they could as well as themselves because this was what the "Holy Karon" said to do. Now, after learning to read for themselves, they are learning that the Taliban have been lying to them.

Because of the many oppressions put on the Afghan people, Afghanistan has been stuck in the 14th century. Most all of the country is without power. There are only two paved roads in Afghanistan, one running north to south and the other east to west. All the housing are mud huts. There is not any running water and most have no water at all. No electric and no food. Therefore, we are also building wells. But it should be noted there is not any good water to be found in Afghanistan. this is due to the mass graves throughout the country and the way the people are buried.

Alexander was the only one who ever really conquered Afghanistan. And while there, he had six, known, castles built. I have gotten to see three of them. They were built in the 14th century and still stand today, altho some have been badly damaged from weather and the wars. We are now using these castles for bases ourselves.

In 2006, after the company I was working for lost the contract, I signed on with the new company and was assigned to work with the Canadian Military. I was stationed at FOB, Ma Sum Ghar (MSG), located in southern Afghanistan and the birth place of the Taliban. Fighting was fierce and on a daily basis. The Taliban did not want to loose this ground. But they were no match for the Canadian tanks and LAV's (light armored vehicles) and have been either captured or killed fighting. However, the area from Ma Sum Ghar to the Iran and Pakistan borders still contains some of the worst fighting.

I hope this help people to understand some of what is going on in Afghanistan as well as Iraq. The Afghan and Iraqi people love us and do not want us to leave for fear the next big gun will just start killing them all over again. Headway is being made. It is going to take years tho to bring Afghanistan up to speed.

War is never a good thing. Lives are lost on both sides and families are torn apart. But, I would rather fight terrorism where they live instead of on our own soil. They have already shown us that they can reach us here, as in the 911 attacks. This can not be allowed to happen again. So try to imagine not having the rights and things you have. Be thankful for having them and thank the ones, both military and contractors for helping keep you safe and enjoying your rights.

movie put together from all the dog handlers photos

movie of how we used the pressure plate IED's

and bottom video is one of the dust storms at Spin Buldak