Stooks (or possibly sheaves) in China

Threshing the grain (at the left of the photo) using foot power

Little groupings of stooks (or possibly shaeves)
ready to be piled into larger mounds (possibly stooks).

I like stooks!

I like the word stooks, the way it rolls around in the mouth, the combination on letters almost mirroring the thing itself (possibly):

The taller t and k reflect the individual dried stalks propped upright, the oo is like the waist of the stook, belted neatly with fibre and the s's at each end are the fibre itself which has bound the stook to stand upright, independently and pertly in fields ready to be stacked into larger structures (I bet they have a cool name too - but if the big thing is the stook as Wikipedia seems to imply - I should have checked earlier - with the little ones being sheaves, then my whole story goes out the window! - except sheaf is a great word too - it just doesn't mirror as beautifully.)

I love the otherworldly look of stooks (and/or sheaves) populating higgledy-piggledy fields. Fields tucked in and shaped to fit into the natural contours of the land, handkerchief sized fields, human friendly and working with the landscape in a way we seem to have long forgotten. No doubt the work is backbreaking, hard, hot and sweaty, I’m not romanticising it, but it’s different to what I know; it looks right and fitting in this landscape – timeless, sustainable, workable.


Here, in Australia, massive tracts of land are pummelled by gigantic machinery, the driver perched way above in air-conditioned cab, barely able to see creatures, dragonflies or bees going about the important business of living, but vital nonetheless to the balance of life, fertilising flowers, ensuring crops thrive.

Photo: I. Travers

Near Guilin, our driver, Chen, and guide Li, were at first bemused by my excitement to see the stooks (or possibly sheaves) mentioned in childhood stories and depicted in old paintings. They later expressed pleasure in learning a new English word, obscure, rarely used, but accurate. Both were eager to go home and delve into dictionaries to learn more about the word’s derivation, history and usage. The following day they shared that the word appeared to originate in Germany, was then adopted in Scotland.

What a joy to teach and be taught about English words in a far off land; to share pleasure in words and play with sounds, to laugh together and wonder how did these words come about?

What words give you delight?
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