Every yellow straw, every kernel of grain exerts a counter force against the rotating parts of my Gleaner combine. Too much material, the parts rotate with complaint. Too little material, the pulley, the belts, the chain, the augers rattle too freely; they were meant to handle force.
I can feel all this through my feet and my steering wheel. I hear all this through the rumbling of the engine. All those counter forces send signals throughout the combine. I hear and feel and absorb those forces. Man and machine are one.
I'm in my seventh season of running the combine. I have come to know these machines in a spiritual way. I know when they are working well. I know when a breakdown is coming. This machine speaks to its operator—if the operator understands its language.
I feel the change of angular momentum when making those slight course corrections to keep the combine straight. That change puts unnecessary stress on bearing, belts, and chains. And the frame twists slightly. That stress means less power goes to the combine concave where the grain is beaten out of the stalk. Less concave power means less grain is going to the hopper. A good combine operator plans course corrections in advance and makes them very gently. By listening to the machine, the operator develops an instinct for keeping the angular momentum nearly constant. A happier machine puts a little more grain in the grain bins—and keeps going longer.
A combine is a circle, actually many circles, all doing different jobs. All circles of the combine depend on each other.
Willie the farm manager told me last season, "You know Eli, from half a mile away, I can tell which Gleaner is yours. Your machine seems to float in the field, when other machines are walking. You're the best goddamn operator we have."
Four other Gleaners are working with me. Six grain trucks are taking grain from combine hoppers to the granaries. We are a circle of combine operators, truck drivers, bin auger operator, and Willie. And a kitchen crew to keep us fed for the 12-hour day. Fourteen Tankosin people to bring the grain in. We'll get this field done in another four hours.
When the Tribal Council decided to farm its own farmland, it purchased 10 small used Gleaner combines. The idea was to get many young people working on farm equipment to give them life skills. By having the same brand and model, we needed to learn only one machine. That strategy has worked well on the Tankosin Farm.
But the combine fleet is getting old. Three machines have become too unreliable and serve to provide parts for the others. By the end of harvest season maybe two or three will still be operating. George Fukuda will spend many of his fall Mondays getting the fallen combines ready for next year.
George is our mechanic. He is from Joosemin and comes every Monday to fix whatever farm and other mechanical equipment needs fixing. He usually collects one or two young Tankosin youth to learn mechanics from him. George is a good teacher. In his many years here, he has helped move at least 30 youth into a trade. Many Tankosin adults have become reasonably good at fixing things because of George. We are doing more of our own farm equipment repairs every year.
My Gleaner is running so well. I'm sure it'll work all week for me. I feel no signals to show combine parts are failing. It took me a day to feel this combine. But now, it and I are our own circle. It will be a good week.
The Tankosin people and the Tankosin TDG should be a circle, sensing each other. Just like me and my combine.
