LA CRETE, AB
Local man Henry Krahn has woken up each morning for the past thirty-five years, ate a piece of cold left-over formavorscht from the night before, stretched and said ‘oba jo‘ to no one in particular, then headed to the barn to milk the cows. This routine has been repeated without fail every single day for more than three decades.
“Ev’ry night I go to bed and when I wake up the next morning it’s still February 2nd and I still have to go milk the cows yet,” explained Krahn. “Every day is exactly the same.”
The Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day explored this phenomenon and presented it in a negative light. The monotony of routine may bore outsiders, but for Mennonites, doing exactly the same thing every single day adds to the spice of life.
“I know what’s expected of me,” said Krahn. “There’s no room for flitting about deciding ‘oh, woe is me, what do I do with my life?’ No. I know exactly what my purpose in life is…and that is to milk the cows every day without fail.”
Krahn says he hopes to continue this way for the rest of his life and then, hopefully, continue this practice in eternity.
“I don’t know if they’ve got cows in Heaven,” admitted Krahn, “but if they do, I’d like to be the one to milk them.”
(Photo credit: Daniel Lobo/CC/modified)