Lessons of Life on the Farm

Farm animals, and indeed companion animals also, seem to flourish with a routine. They like things to have continuity and get flustered or out of sorts when the their routine is off. Things are always changing on a farm in fact, change is certain. With that there are some things about farm life that are certain; the sun rises and sets, seasons change, plants are planted and crops are harvested, babies are born and grow up, babies are born, and babies die.  


There isn’t enough studying or training to prepare one for when the inevitable happens. We try our hardest to tend to and provide stewardship for our farm creatures but the cycle of life marches on, relentlessly and indeed sometimes harshly. 

As the sun rises each day there are always chores: feeding, watering, cleaning, medicating, socializing. It never ends, and while we grieve the loss of two sweet baby goats last night we have to face the new day with the same set of responsibilities and perseverance as the last, regardless of our sadness  and profound sense of loss.  The four pounds that left us last night feels like a 1000 pound weight on our hearts. 

Lessons learned and the distraction of daily routines doesn’t seem to take the sting of out of losing our little ones yet, there is another little one calling and I have make myself keep moving.

"There is a road, no simple highway,
Between the dawn and the dark of night,
And if you go no one may follow,
That path is for your steps alone."
Hunter/Garcia

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