Fat on the backs of these cows insulates them from inclement weather. It offers a form of protection, enabling livestock to reside in fresh air and full sun at all times, despite freezing temperatures. We are selecting cows who store enough back-fat to make it through the winter without pampering, while nursing calves at the same time. Fat provides shelter.
Decent housing is central to decent living. It comprises one of the three basic needs, the other two being food and love. During the last half of 2014, we renovated this 100-year-old farmhouse, so Landis Weaver could move into it in January. The house was transformed from being dark and tired to upright and happy. For the past three years, Landis has been working from dawn to dusk to build the organic dairy on our farm, and is thus deserving. He is also courting a young lady from a Mennonite community in Maryland, and is thus awaiting. So, he and we are prepared! Good housing attracts good people, as does good food and good loving.
as Dante relied on Vergil to steer him through Purgatory. For without such, one resides on the sawed-off stump of technological bewilderment, as I nearly have the past three weeks. But my dear nephew kindly delved for me into the depths of: coding, programming, downloading, installing, uninstalling, re-installing, browsing, snipping, cookies, crackers, updating, searching, and outsourcing to rescue me from the purgatory of technological helplessness.
So, what happens when MailChimp's upload of pictures is not working, as it is not at this moment? Do we substitute each picture with 1,000 words. I have six pictures to share with you. Would six thousand words or ten pages of type serve as a substitute? That would be deadening. The pictures will wait until next week!
It has been 30 years since we last harvested timber from our woods, despite monthly inquiries from loggers. The venture three decades ago left us with scarred trees, deep ruts, and considerable apprehension.
Old family friends shared with us their grandmother's recipe, with which we indulge ourselves once a year during these holidays. The eggs come from our farm, but we can't claim the Maker's Mark or rum that lace egg whites and whipped cream with addictive powers.
This picture was inspired by fearless friend and neighbor, Nancy Stranahan, who runs the Highland Nature Sanctuary about five miles up the road. Her Winter Newsletter features "tree people" and the majesty of local forests she is preserving, with the help of many supporters.
Bringing the tribe together is a rewarding and complicated process, that leaves one enriched by personalities, exhausted by endless efforts, relieved by termination, and hopeful for the next round. As we gather during this season of celebration, we present ourselves with much to navigate. One phenomenon is the clan is always changing, yet it is constant as a whole. Our children, parents, and selves keep naturally evolving and moving outward. They and we also marry or bring partners to the fore, who thankfully instill new vigor and shift old patterns. The group feels homogeneous from the outside, but is percolating with unruly life on the inside, forging strength for the future.
One of the hardest things in life is knowing when to wait and when to advance. For those eager to engage, waiting can be very difficult. But timing often is the difference between success and failure, so the most expeditious way forward can be standing still. This is an intense activity in itself, as witnessed in these border collies, which is not to be confused with lethargy or passivity.
The well-pump at the dairy wouldn't stop running, so we assumed a leak had sprung in the underground waterline somewhere. Even with 18,000 feet of waterline to trace, a leak usually announces itself through a large wet spot in the ground. We have always found leaks in the past, but this one was proving totally elusive.
This may be one of the few examples where the rear is as beautiful as the head! These horses love to work, and it shows.
He is a neighbor, who dropped off this harvest from his hives, in anticipation that a deer he would be tracking might come onto our property... Such was his explanation, but to us this felt like an expression of his pure goodness; he wanted to give. It was a deep privilege to receive the offering. He was so earnest and his gesture so beautiful, it almost felt sacred.
