My grandfather Paul or Papa on my mom’s side was a farmer who lived in rural southwest Missouri (the Ozarks). I remember getting up at 5:30am (or earlier) a few times to help him milk the cows. (and shovel manure)  He had about twenty head with about 3-4 electric milking machines but would also milk cows by hand when need be. One of the few things I inherited directly from my grandma was his old milking stool. She said she could remember having it since the “Thirties” but it may have been in the family much longer. I use it almost everyday in my studio for one thing or another. I have never painted the stool although it looked like it had been freshly painted before my grandmother passed. There are not many things in my life that I use on a daily, monthly, or even yearly basis that goes back as far as this stool does, included are the memories.