A farrier lived in Mandres-en-Barrois, a small French village, where he fitted horseshoes and mended farm carts for years. Then he either saw a vehicle pass through the neighboring town or learned of it from the paper. Not long after, he changed his trade entirely and became a mechanic, just as every man in his family would follow in the years to come.
A writer’s family has held the same purpose across generations, helping people move from place to place. Horses gave way to engines, yet the family continued serving that same need, only with different tools at their disposal. For the writer, this history offers comfort, proof that change is nothing new.
The Farrier Who Saw the Car
Horses were central to life in the village where the farrier lived, until he encountered a car. No one knows what thoughts crossed his mind at that precise instant, but the outcome is plain: he altered his livelihood.
He exchanged his horses for engine grease, and he mourned that trade for a long time. Yet in the end, he did not abandon his resolve. He merely altered the means to it.
Developers Today Wonder the Same Way
This account is being told now because its author finds himself surrounded by developers who start each morning unsure of their future. Their dread stems from the same source as the farrier’s fear: the prospect of being rendered obsolete, in this case by artificial intelligence rather than the automobile.
A century ago, the tractor rolled into villages while the car drove through towns. Both machines arrived with wonder and dread. People watched them arrive and wondered what they would do next. They did not have X to doomscroll first thing in the morning, but they still imagined the worst.
The Torments Are Forgotten Now
A hundred years on, the great-great-grandfather’s sufferings have passed away. The garage now seems to have belonged to the family from the very beginning. The father held his position with a devotion that few can claim, as though the work had been handed down through generations before him.
The family stuck to their longtime calling, aiding those who needed to travel. In the village, certain households continue to till the very same fields. The writer’s kin held onto that same purpose.
Not Every Farrier Became a Mechanic
The writer has never met a farrier who turned into a mechanic, and he makes no claim that his tale applies to all of them. He simply relates what happened, without pretending to prove anything. What gives him pause is the question of whether what drew people to this work may have been something beyond the code alone.
Deep down, many of us are pushed not by the coding itself but by the thrill of building things, working through problems, and watching people put our creations to use. Many of us chose to become developers before ever learning to code, simply to make video games or websites. The wish came before the code.
Holding On to the Why
The guidance from the writer is brief and plain: give up the need to know how things work in order to keep hold of the reason for doing them.
What the Story Teaches Us
The tale provides a calm teaching on alteration. People often fear new machinery, particularly when it seems likely to take their work away. Yet the blacksmith’s experience shows that change does not always mean complete ruin.
His horses were taken from him, yet he discovered another means to fulfill the same function. He assisted others in traveling by engine rather than on horseback, preserving the original aim despite the altered equipment.
The Garage That Feels Like Always
The writer describes the garage as if it had always existed. The family kept the same purpose from generation to generation. The fields are farmed the same way, and the garage serves the same need.
The reassurance stems from realizing that a family member once shared the same fears. The writer enjoys declaring AI to be the greatest revolution since the Industrial Revolution, and insists we are experiencing a change unlike any other in history. Yet this fails to account for the farmers who witnessed the tractor’s arrival, or the farrier who saw the car come rolling in.
In those days, the upheaval was close at hand, striking the person living next door. There was no X for them to doomscroll first thing in the morning, yet they still wondered what on earth they were going to do, picturing the worst case.
The Comparison Table
| Generation | Job | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Great-great-grandfather | Farrier | Helping people get around |
| Great-great-grandfather (later) | Mechanic | Helping people get around |
| Father | Mechanic | Helping people get around |
| Writer | Developer | Helping people get around |
Each row carries the same aim throughout. Different duties come into play, yet the aim never shifts.
The Order of Generations
- The great-great-grandfather was a farrier in Mandres-en-Barrois.
- He became a mechanic after seeing the car.
- Mechanics followed in the family footsteps after him.
- The writer’s father loved his job like few people know, as if it had run in the family forever.
- The writer now writes about developers wondering what will become of them.
Every generation had the same purpose, though the world around them kept changing. The farrier’s story proves that change does not always spell ruin; it can simply mean a new set of tools while the meaning remains the same.
This writer takes solace in something: he knows that a relative in his family shared the same worries before him. He likes to call AI the greatest change since the Industrial Revolution, yet he also remembers that farmers watched the tractor roll in, and the farrier watched the car arrive.
They wondered what they would do next. They imagined the worst.
The purpose held firm. The garage seems to have always existed. The farrier’s sorrow vanished. The tractor and the automobile came along, and the family adjusted. They kept aiding others in getting about, simply using different means.
What the author says comes down to being open to letting go of the method while keeping the reason firmly held. The way things happen shifts over time, but the underlying purpose remains constant.
The story’s entire point rests on the fact that change is not new, and that what we care about often outlives the work we do. The writer’s great-great-grandfather swapped his horses for engine grease, and he held onto his purpose. The writer hopes that today’s developers can find the same peace.
Source material: “The last time my family was replaced by technology,” darcemont.fr.
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