0:00:21 > 0:00:23This story belongs to Rhea
0:00:23 > 0:00:25and her Granny Mary.
0:00:28 > 0:00:34It's a tiny tale about Granny Mary's life and the things she used to do.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41Now it's time for her to share her memories
0:00:41 > 0:00:45and take Rhea on a journey of discovery.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52What has Granny Mary got in store for Rhea?
0:00:52 > 0:00:53Let's find out.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03Rhea and her granny are digging to plant barley.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06Barley is used for making bread.
0:01:06 > 0:01:09This is a spade you only get in Shetland.
0:01:09 > 0:01:13You see the small head and the wooden bit for your foot?
0:01:13 > 0:01:17Rhea and her granny live on one of the Shetland Islands.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20The Shetland Islands are a group of islands
0:01:20 > 0:01:23far away from Scotland, out in the ocean.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28You need to turn over the earth, before we set the seeds.
0:01:28 > 0:01:30- Would you like to have a go?- OK.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33Rhea and her Granny Mary are turning the soil
0:01:33 > 0:01:36to get rid of weeds and lumps
0:01:36 > 0:01:40so they can plant the seeds to grow the barley.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43So that's what barley seeds look like!
0:01:43 > 0:01:47- What else do we need to make the barley grow?- Water.
0:01:47 > 0:01:48That's right.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51So it will need to rain.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54When the barley's ready, Granny, can we eat it?
0:01:54 > 0:01:58Yes, we could make bread with it, Rhea.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00Granny Mary lives on a croft.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04A croft is like a small farm, but we only keep Shetland animals.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08Crofters live off the land from their crofts and grow vegetables
0:02:08 > 0:02:10and keep animals.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13Granny Mary has lots to tell Rhea
0:02:13 > 0:02:16about growing food on her croft.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23And off Rhea and her Granny Mary go to find out more.
0:02:32 > 0:02:36Granny Mary and Rhea are from a family of crofters.
0:02:40 > 0:02:44For hundreds of years, crofting has been
0:02:44 > 0:02:48a way of life in the Scottish Highlands and Islands.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51Families live off the land by growing their own crops
0:02:51 > 0:02:53like barley and vegetables
0:02:53 > 0:02:56and rearing their own animals, like goats...
0:03:01 > 0:03:02and sheep.
0:03:02 > 0:03:08Look, sometimes it was a tough job keeping those sheep in check.
0:03:13 > 0:03:15Every member of the family had to help out,
0:03:15 > 0:03:18including the children.
0:03:28 > 0:03:32Granny Mary has taken Rhea to a special croft house museum to
0:03:32 > 0:03:36see what it was like living in a croft a long time ago.
0:03:38 > 0:03:43It's a perfect day to see what life was like in the Shetland Islands.
0:03:43 > 0:03:47The sun is shining, the sea is choppy - it's always a bit windy,
0:03:47 > 0:03:49and the ducks are having fun
0:03:49 > 0:03:53wandering around in the fresh air and sunshine.
0:03:59 > 0:04:05This is a very old croft house, Rhea, similar to my grandad's croft house.
0:04:05 > 0:04:10It has a little bit of land around it to grow crops and keep animals.
0:04:10 > 0:04:11Will we have a look inside?
0:04:11 > 0:04:14This old croft is just like the one
0:04:14 > 0:04:18Granny Mary spent her summers in as a little girl.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21It sat on a bit of land where her grandpa grew vegetables
0:04:21 > 0:04:23and kept some animals.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26It's quite dark in here, Granny.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29Yes, it is, do you see any lights?
0:04:29 > 0:04:31No.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34When I was your age, we had no electric lights
0:04:34 > 0:04:36on my grandfather's croft when I was little.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39It's quite smoky in here, Granny.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42Yes, it is, that's because the croft houses burn peat.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45My grandfather burnt peat on his fire.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48Have you seen peat before, Rhea?
0:04:48 > 0:04:50No.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53This is peat. It's a bit like coal.
0:04:53 > 0:04:56In summer, crofters dig peat from the fields,
0:04:56 > 0:04:59just like in these old pictures here.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03They cut it into pieces using this special peat spade
0:05:03 > 0:05:06and then lay it out in the sunshine to dry.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12Once that's done, they take it home to burn over the winter
0:05:12 > 0:05:16to keep the croft house and its family nice and warm.
0:05:16 > 0:05:20It gives off a strong smell when it's burning.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22Yes, it does. Do you like the smell, Rhea?
0:05:22 > 0:05:23Yeah.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31A crofter's life is very busy.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33You've got to look after all your animals
0:05:33 > 0:05:37and Rhea just loves to feed the hens in Granny Mary's croft.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42Just like Granny Mary when she was a young girl,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45Rhea's favourite part of the day is feeding the hens,
0:05:45 > 0:05:48and it's so nice to do it with her granny.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54Those hens are hungry.
0:05:55 > 0:05:57Coo-coo-coo-ken!
0:05:57 > 0:05:59That's a good way to call hens.
0:05:59 > 0:06:03Can you tell the boy hens from the girl hens?
0:06:03 > 0:06:06The boys go, "Cock a doodle do!"
0:06:08 > 0:06:09What happy hens!
0:06:09 > 0:06:13They love living on the island with lots of room to roam and
0:06:13 > 0:06:17produce something delicious to eat at breakfast.
0:06:17 > 0:06:21Good girl, Rhea. Will we go and see if the hens have laid any eggs?
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Yes, Granny.
0:06:23 > 0:06:28And of they go, to see if their hens have laid any eggs.
0:06:28 > 0:06:33Are they in luck? Oh, yes! They are in for a treat.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36How many have you got?
0:06:36 > 0:06:38We've got seven eggs.
0:06:40 > 0:06:41Well done, Rhea.
0:06:46 > 0:06:52There are more animals on the croft and they need looking after, too.
0:06:57 > 0:06:59Here's a Shetland sheep.
0:06:59 > 0:07:03- Do you see how nice and thick and woolly its coat is?- Yeah.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07It keeps it warm in winter. In summer we have to cut it off.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09It's just like having a haircut.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21Don't worry about the sheep, it's used to getting its wool cut,
0:07:21 > 0:07:23and in fact, quite enjoys it.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25Watch for those scissors!
0:07:25 > 0:07:31When Rhea is older, she can help her Granny Mary sheer the sheep, too.
0:07:34 > 0:07:37What will we do with this fleece?
0:07:37 > 0:07:39We can make a woolly jumper.
0:07:39 > 0:07:40Yes, we could.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47Amazing, all that wool from one sheep.
0:07:47 > 0:07:51That will make lots of woolly jumpers.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02And there's someone else Rhea wants us to meet.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11This is my grandad, Tammy.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14And he's married to Granny Mary.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17Will we try some line-fishing?
0:08:17 > 0:08:19- Yes, please, Grandad. - Come on, then.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30Grandad Tammy also does something very special.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32He makes boats by hand.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38Look at this one. What better way to go line-fishing
0:08:38 > 0:08:42than on your grandad's very own, home-made boat?
0:08:54 > 0:08:57Granny Mary and Rhea are off to visit
0:08:57 > 0:09:00one of Rhea's best friends in the whole, wide world.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08This is my Shetland pony, Haldor.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11Do you know Shetland ponies are famous all over the world?
0:09:11 > 0:09:14Why, Granny?
0:09:14 > 0:09:18Because they're very small, they're very strong with lots of hair,
0:09:18 > 0:09:23- and do you know one other thing? - What, Granny?- They're very gentle.
0:09:29 > 0:09:33Rhea is not the only child with a Shetland pony.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37Children all over Britain and beyond, who love horses,
0:09:37 > 0:09:41start riding when they're very young on Shetland ponies
0:09:41 > 0:09:43because they're so gentle and so small.
0:09:45 > 0:09:50Just like the other animals on the croft, we have to look after them.
0:09:50 > 0:09:51Will we brush them?
0:09:51 > 0:09:56Rhea's pony Haldor just loves to be brushed and taken care of.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05And Rhea and her granny do such a good job.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14Grandad Tammy has another string to his bow
0:10:14 > 0:10:16and you'll never guess what.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23Crofters always did more than one job,
0:10:23 > 0:10:27and I build boats and I make fiddles.
0:10:28 > 0:10:32Not only does he make boats, but he makes his own fiddles.
0:10:32 > 0:10:36Why do you make fiddles, Grandad?
0:10:36 > 0:10:40The fiddles are just for a hobby, just to do on the winter nights.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42- You see this piece of wood, here?- Yeah.
0:10:42 > 0:10:48Well, this is the same piece of the tree that I made this fiddle from.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52And it grew on Shetland.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55Can you play the tune that Tess sings to?
0:10:57 > 0:11:00Tess just loves singing along...
0:11:00 > 0:11:03DOG HOWLS
0:11:07 > 0:11:08..and keeps in tune!
0:11:11 > 0:11:13HOWLING CONTINUES
0:11:22 > 0:11:24And look at this old film here.
0:11:24 > 0:11:29Fiddles are played at special Shetland dances called gatherings.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31Don't they sound fantastic?
0:11:47 > 0:11:50One thing that Rhea loves to make with Granny Mary is
0:11:50 > 0:11:54special Shetland bread called bannocks.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01That's good.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04And of course, bannocks are made from flour which is
0:12:04 > 0:12:07made from the barley grown on the croft.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09They'll be delicious.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12They'll be excellent.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15Would you like a bannock, Rhea?
0:12:15 > 0:12:17Yes, please, Granny.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22The flour for the bannock is made out of Shetland barley,
0:12:22 > 0:12:28- just like we planted earlier. - Mmmm, I love Shetland bannocks.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32- Did you have fun learning about my story?- Yeah.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35What a day for Rhea and her Granny Mary.
0:12:35 > 0:12:40Rhea found out about Granny Mary's life on a croft when she was young.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43Rhea got the chance to plant some barley.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46She helped feed the chickens.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49Watched Granny Mary give the sheep a good haircut.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53And had such fun with her grandpa Tammy as he played the fiddle
0:12:53 > 0:12:57with Tess the dog joining in with her very funny singing.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01- What was your favourite bit? - Line-fishing on grandad's boat.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04That was a good bit, wasn't it?
0:13:04 > 0:13:07I've had a lovely time sharing my story and telling
0:13:07 > 0:13:12you all about the Shetland animals and life on our croft.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15Come and give granny a big hug.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25What a fabulous heap of fun.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28That was Rhea and Granny Mary's tiny tale
0:13:28 > 0:13:32about the things Granny Mary used to do and the fun she had.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35And why she has a Shetland shovel!
0:13:35 > 0:13:38Granny Mary has shared her story with Rhea.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41Now Rhea is starting her own story.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44Do you know someone who has a story to share?
0:13:44 > 0:13:47Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd