ABSTRACT
Life in the countryside, with all its challenges, continued to allure peasants with features that were unknown in larger urban centers. Some dwellers appreciated that rural life was a mix of old and new, tradition and innovation, age-old habits and scientific advancements. Others loved the close proximity of nature. Many rural residents commented that they felt “exuberant happiness” to be so close to nature. “When getting to work, there are sunflowers bright as dawn on one side, and grain high and strong on the other side . . . and you go and see that there is real nature and real happiness there.”1 Nature also dictated the pace of life as most agricultural work was seasonal. While the work was heavy and demanding during the planting and harvesting seasons, there was none of the chaos and madness of urban life, and the speed of life slowed down significantly during the winter months.
