The part about her planting a vineyard with her own earnings probably could be interpreted that way. In the old days women would sell extra eggs or butter. That would be a way to earn some money without leaving the children alone or even the house. If a woman worked, she wouldn’t be able to do the laundry by hand or bake the daily bread, the things we have so easy today.
I was thinking much the same thing, CB.
Back in times gone by, women had different talents. Some would sew, grow things, bake, etc. A little extra money could be made by selling what you could comfortably produce at home, to someone who could not. Even piano lessons seem to fall into this category of extra income.
This makes sense to me - if you sell what you can comfortably produce, with no pressure to produce large quantities, and deadlines that have to be met, it would bring in a little extra money without the pressure and stress of having to pack up the kids and head out to the office. No time for good meals, everything done in a hurry, lots of take-out or convenience foods....just not good.
I’ll have to set her straight....maybe lol.