To Torment and Afflict "Man"

Half of my childhood was spent living on my grandparent's farm.  There were a total of 6 families living there at the time.  I think it was probably hard for the adults, but as kids we LOVED it.  There was always someone to play with and so many places to explore.  Then after a fued between some of the family, everyone moved (except my grandparents and great aunt and uncle - my grandpa's brother and my grandma's sister who happened to marry each other - don't ya just love small towns!) 
Growing up on a farm helped me learn to work hard.  My first paying job (around 10 or 11 yrs old) was "walking beans."  For you non-farm folks, that means walking up and down each row and pulling the weeds (this was obviously before Round-Up-Ready beans were developed!)  It involved getting up before the sun (around 4 am), riding my bike out to the farm (sometimes as far as 15 miles), and then walking and pulling weeds till it was too hot to move (around 1-2 pm).  It was hard work, but the pay was good.  I made $5.00 an hour (gasp! - but that was about 3 dollars more than minimum wage at that time - okay now I am feeling old!) 
I worked that job every summer until I was old enough to get a "real" job.  I have to say that I completely understand the punishment God gave Adam (and the rest of us) - "and the earth shall bring forth thistles, briars, and noxious weeds to torment and afflict man..."  Weeds are definately an affliction, but I am thankful for the opportunity I had to learn to work hard and for the wonderful satisfaction you feel when you look back on a field and see no more weeds.  As usual, Heavenly Father knew exactly what He was doing.