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Good Day I always proclaim December 21st as the "first day of Spring". I seem to be fairly alone in this assessment, as I am also for not turning my personal clocks back when daylight savings time ends. (I like that extra hour of daylight in the evening) December 21st is when we start having each day with a little more daylight, and each day increases until June 21st. On the ranch, in nature, and in our own lives, the amount of light received each day controls so many areas of growth. Already, our male peacocks are starting to grow back their long spectacular tail feathers. The young turkeys are learning to gobble, and young calves are a bit friskier, even in the really cold temperatures. Of course, as we all know, most of "springing forth" is still to come. However, more daylight lets me know that we're growing toward it just a little more every day... just as every day we have the opportunity to grow more as God intended. Nothing like a little "hope" to brighten a winter day. Yesterday, Bette came down the road to a beautiful sight…two bald eagles on the ground by one of our ponds. At least it was a beautiful sight until she realized they were eating on one of our goats! This year has been an especially challenging year for maintaining balance at the ranch between nature and what we try and do and present to people (and ourselves). While we embrace wildlife, we seem to be endlessly engaged in trying to control some portion of it (hmmm… could that be part of the problem – trying to control nature (God) ? The last 2 years we’ve been overrun with groundhogs, which dig large holes, many of which are in the areas you don’t want, such as under buildings and in people and animal walking areas. These holes are then used by a wide variety of other animals (like skunks). It doesn’t seem to matter how many times we fill them – I seems like once they’re dug some animal finds them by animal sonar and digs again! Then there are the beavers, who chew down the few trees left on the creeks and the lake…it’s hard to replace a tree, The otters are cute, but will clean out most of the fish in the lake or creeks very quickly. And then there are the coyotes (and a few hunting dogs), who love to feast on young goats and lambs (and an occasional older one). We’ve had more losses this year than all other years combined. Using dogs as guard animals is the usual choice by stockmen, but because we have people always around we choose less aggressive guard animals, such as burros and llamas. However less aggressive also means less effective. So, would we trade our feeble efforts for a more man-made lifestyle else where. No, not ever. Interacting with nature on the ranch is a connection to God, for us and for our guests and visitors. Now if I can just get God to do things my way…Summertime, and the liven' is easy now.......so goes the song, and for the most part all the animals on the ranch go along with it. In the middle of the day with the sun bearing down, you'll find all the ranch animals in the shadiest spots they they can find, not moving nor eating, just waiting patiently for the heat to pass into the cool of the evening. As I work outside at various jobs that I think I must do, I can just hear their thoughts of "that guys got a lot to learn" I think they're right ! I was reading words from Elizabeth Sherrill in Guideposts this morning about change. One of the main things that we may see in nature is the constant change in everything around us. If it is living, as in people, plants, and animals, it is constantly growing, never remaining as it was, ever. If the objects are inanimate, they are constantly being broken down, atom by atom, until they return to the building blocks of life again.. Against this very obvious demonstration of God as creativity and change, I find myself wanting to be creative, but then not wanting the change part. I clean up fields, fix fences and buildings, doctor and feed all sorts of animals, and spend much of my energy building my "picture frame" around God's bounty, but then I don't want it to change. This desire we all have to "freeze" life when we have it where we like it, where it makes us feel secure and creative, is also of God. God is, always, eternal, and as such never changes while constantly creating and changing. I need to find my desire for "changelessness" not in my surroundings, or circumstances, but right where it's always been, in God. It's the first day of the new year, and the sun is starting to rise over the horizon and spread it's warmth, in what has been a cold winter to date. In nature, certain elements have to be present for change, such as the sun, and rain, or growth will not happen. The equally essential part of this growth is the seed, whether it be one from the animal or the plant kingdom. This seed, while it has a physical shape or presence, is also full of spiritual presence, of hope and certainty, of growth and love, of change and harmony at the same time. May we take time at the beginning of this new year to recognize that we are all from these same seeds, these fruits of the spirit. Good Morning .......I thought yesterday [before our latest flood on the creek] that I was starting to get caught up on the wintertime preparation jobs. However, the flood took out all our rebuilt fencing and a lot of our rebuilt roads, and will take days to get back to usability. In the meantime, I'm scrambling to keep the cows from wandering where ever they want to go, which they like to do just because they can. I look at what I do on the ranch as putting a picture frame around God's creation, but after trying again and again to maintain fencing, roads, etc. down by the creek I realize that my picture frame doesn't fit this picture. So rather than frustration at my inability to control nature [my usual ineffective response], I think I'll meditate on how to put the correct frame around this picture. Yes, I'm trainable, but it takes a long time! Listen to the birds sing!.......In times past it used to be that living in the country gave you a little more insulation from the cares and problems of the rest of the world. Before the advent of satellite TV, cell phones, and the internet it was possible to "forget" the rest of the world and live in our own smaller more peaceful one. While the invention of the above has connected us all more closely with each other, and made the world a smaller place [and oneness is good], it has also increased our worry and accelerated the pace of our living to a level that makes us feel out of sync with our lives. May we remember that the beauty and peacefulness of nature still has its effectiveness on us that God intended. As you sit on the deck in the early morning, or walk the trails, listening to the birds and feeling the warmth of the morning sun, there's a oneness with the symphony of life around us. If only for a short while, this can refresh our batteries and send us back into the "everyday" world with a renewed sense of peace and harmony, and hope for the future. May you find the time to seek a recharge from nature today, be it here on the ranch or in a park, a grove of trees, or your own backyard. Springtime...... in the country, and the city too, is a time of new beginning and awakening in nature, as all the plants start their cycles of re-birth and growth. It's the same with all our animals, as reproduction seems to be foremost in many of their thoughts, and you see a playfulness even in the older animals on the ranch. Springtime is also garden time, when we prepare the soil, decide on what to plant, and place the seeds in the ground. Visions of produce occupy the thoughts, with the hope of fresh vegetables and other plants and berries to eat thru out the summer, fall, and winter. Even though we expend lots of energy and do lots of work with no immediate return, we automatically have the faith that the seeds we are planting will grow and return to us many times over, because we have seen this happen time and again. This same law applies to planting seeds of the fruits of the spirit, seeds of love peace, mercy, harmony, and joy. Even though we cannot see the fruits at the time we are planting, they will grow as surly as the produce in our gardens, and will return to ourselves and others in their own kind, many times over, in due time. May we all plant a seed today, in the hope and sure knowledge of its growth for all of us. Winter/Spring.......Every winter I have the best of intentions and a long list of jobs around the ranch and the houses. However, I seem to cycle like the seasons, and have trouble getting motivated until the springtime arrives. At that time all the hustle and growth of the season inspires me also to start on the new projects for the ranch, to finish some of the old ones, and to do the maintenance necessary to keep everything running and in good shape. Of course the winter didn't find me totally in hibernation, as all the animals still needed care and feeding, a much larger and time consuming job in cold weather. So what are we hoping to accomplish this spring and summer? On the physical level we want to upgrade the main ranch house with a new larger air conditioning system. We have already installed a larger hot water heater, and also re-shingled the roof. As of this time we are in the middle of repainting the house and refinishing the decks. The Cabin Ridge house is going to get an update to its ventilation systems, and new paint and roof to the outbuildings, as well new furnishings and the addition of a washer and dryer. We are continuing our "history" part of the Old Red Barn, and have added a new metal roof to our poultry house. We also have a "gazebo on the lake" planned for this summers projects....just in case we don't have enough to do! We have not raised any of our prices for the year, except for our main hall rental, and have lowered them for stays in the log cabin, tree retreat, campground, and sheepherders wagon. We want to give more people a chance to experience these places, and hope that lowering the rates will help accomplish this. Through out all the physical demands of the ranch, we work hard at remembering that the ranch is people, not its physical buildings or projects. While wanting to put a "picture frame" around the beauty of Gods nature, we also want to be in the picture ourselves, be it nothing more than giving a smile or a chance to let kids feed the animals, or any other small interaction with the visitors who find themselves at the ranch. Wintertime.....Ice storms always make for challenging times on the ranch. When all the things that a person has to do involve being out in nature, you have to work within its bounds, in harmony and with a little help from our man made environment and tools. Ice storms have a way of stripping away that facade of power that we think we wield over our environment, and leave us with either working within natures mandates, or not working at all. Like all lessons of true meaning in life, it is again a release of our will and a working in and with Gods will. And what beauty there is in the interplay of ice, quiet, and solitude....an aliveness by its sheer closeness to, and dependence on, the basic qualities of life. Thanksgiving .......In this slowing down time for both nature and myself, as I go about the chores and repairs of the ranch, I'm more aware of the oneness of all about me, of the flow of all life forces in nature, which is the preservation of the species, the oneness, rather than the individual. All nature, whether plant, animal, or insect, reflects this oneness. May you find peace and purpose in the coming season as 2008 comes to a close. Peace, happiness, a sense of harmony with life, is that elusive feeling that we all want to experience, and only comes to us in patience as we develop a purpose for living. To me that purpose, or ideal, is very evident. It is the recognition and advancement of the oneness that we all share, that surrounds us in all of nature, that stirs a chord of realization deep within us. May you make time to take a walk, to meditate, to feel that oneness that all of nature {and ourselves} proclaims. Middle October.......Whenever possible I try and do my morning meditations at sunrise, when the world is transitioning into day, and all of nature slowly wakes up and speaks its voice into the early symphony of Gods gift of sound and light. Everyone has their own sleeping patterns and times of waking , which many times does not include the early morning sunrise. However, if I could give only one experience to those visiting the ranch, I would wish it to be that of feeling the re-birth that happens every morning of our lives. On a purely physical level, the rising of the sun brings back one of the essential building blocks of life, and this gift is reflected in every animal on the ranch as they add their movements and sound to the chorus. On a spiritual level, the dawning of each day can renew in us a sense of hope that all will be better, if we can but learn to be patient and wait on the "still small voice of God from within". Fall 2008......."Guineas" are a type of fowl, similar to chickens but a little wilder and more independent. They are also called barnyard watchdogs because of the raucous noise they will make at any changes going on around them. Next to our peacocks people like them the best of all our "feathered friends". They will greet you when you arrive, wait around and hope that you will feed them, and lacking that will run off together, always staying in a group. They range far and wide, up to a quarter mile or further away, and yet suffer few loses, because there will always be a several in the group who are "on guard" for any sign of harm to the flock. How those guards are picked is another mystery of nature, because they change thru-out the day. All of nature declares the necessity of the "group", the us versus the them. The "self" is real and remains, but survives only in harmony with the "us". Another reminder from God. October.......It's fall in the Ozarks, and it's impossible to not appreciate the beauty of nature....especially when the cooler weather makes being outdoors much more enjoyable. We are blessed in this part of the country with "water", in all its forms and with all its physical and spiritual beauty. The ranch itself has over two miles of small creeks, and many springs. We are only one mile from the Jacks Fork River, whose beauty even the government has recognized by making it part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. All this water is what makes us "unique", and water has a spirit of its own that speaks to us of God. After many years of drought its good to see springs running again that had not done so for a number of years. It's hard to find a better place to be than outdoors on a sunny fall day, next to a small creek or spring. We are 90% water ourselves, and on these days its a "peaceful easy feeling" to try and flow inside in harmony with the water flowing outside. September......It's been a busy summer for us on the ranch........as usual, there were many more things to do than we got done. March brought us a 100 year flood again!....the last one was in 1993. It completely destroyed our labyrinth and took down over 3 miles of fencing up and down the creek. This was after we just finished a two year project to fix all our fencing systems for intensive grazing. We have about three quarters of the repairs done, and hope to complete the rest this winter. Water is beautiful and powerful when it comes all at once. Its a price we pay for having the creeks, but I would never trade it for dry land! We added the Cabin Ridge house to our places that people can stay at, so we got all the furnishings up to what we wanted and its now available {see more info on it under lodging} The best part of the summer??-- people! We were busy enough to always have lots of you enjoying the ranch, but not so busy as to lose the feel of "having the ranch to yourself" that we always want people to experience.
It’s
2008! – and Spring is almost here.
I hope you have been and are weathering the “slings &
arrows of outrageous fortune,” that seem to be happening a lot,
and are able to have a smile on your face, and some hope in your
heart.
What’s new on the ranch? As
usual, we’ve had a number of changes.
Projects that we have finished up on (mostly) include the
intensive grazing system for our cattle, the completion of the
labyrinth area, laying out and marking the walking trails, and
getting the sheepherders wagon settled in for people to use.
We’ve worked on repairs and maintenance to many of our
buildings and we installed a larger hot water system in the Ranch
House. We’ve added a
new rental “house” to our lodging adventures, which is the
completely remodeled and updated “Old Red Barn”, a combination
of a 1960’s era milking barn and a lodging area also. (see our web site for more
info, and pictures to follow soon)
Those who have stayed here
will remember it as the red barn up on the hill that our ranch
manager
This
year we will “finally!” have done by Memorial Day the Russ Noah
Log Cabin and the Tree Retreat on the Creek, both projects that have
taken us longer to finish than we had anticipated….but, we feel
that they will be in the correct spirit and ambiance intended for
them when done – Not to mention, fun places to stay! This fall we purchased the house on the other ridge across from the Ranch House. It’s a 3 bedroom brick house with a great view of the ranch meadows. The house is fully furnished, ready to live in. Since we will not be able to do anything with its “program” wise for a year or two, we are considering renting it out on a long term basis as a vacation home or residence. It you are interested, give us a call.
January…..the
middle of a month of colder weather ( I hate to use the word
“winter”) always brings with it time to reflect, review, and
renew our ideas and direction.
This was and still is a time when those working with the physical rhythms
of nature fix their equipment, check their seeds and supplies, and
make sure all is ready for the coming season. It’s
also a great time for exercising and refining the “mental”,
which is the consideration of our ideal, that statement or set of
thoughts that we try to live our lives by.
All of us have an “ideal”, which is the “seed” of our
behavior, the direction by which we exhibit and live our physical
lives. It’s important
to us as people to be aware of our ideal, and to refine it as we
ourselves change. We are
the only creatures that God has given this ability to, and we
develop and grow our awareness of our “ideal” daily thru our
meditations and prayers. May
we all take time to go inside, to listen to the “still small
voice” that helps us to guide our physical lives, our growth
toward being seeds, children, of the energy that is God.
December.....to
everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.
That’s a very peaceful feeling phrase, because we feel a
bit of the eternity and oneness that it conveys.
The cycle, the return to the seed and re-growth,
is what nature is all about. On
the ranch it is always evident when we move back enough to see the
complete cycle. The seed
is planted, the newborn arrives,
thru growth it matures, and replants its own likeness to
begin again. There is a
peacefulness and harmony in that cycle, which is a part of us also.
It is the oneness of the “ I am” that we are, striving to
grow as the child of the “Great I am”, the oneness of all that
is.
November......When
feeding animals on the ranch, we usually try and put out multiple
piles of grain in different places so as to spread out the herd or
flock as they eat. In
every flock, herd, or group of poultry we have, there are always two
different types of feeders. The
one group will go to a single
pile and eat the grain there, while the second group will run from
pile to pile, always expecting the next one to be ”better”, or
“more” and as a final result getting less food than the first
group. We people are at
times like that too. Instead
of chasing after what we don’t have… may we be grateful and
thankful for what we do have. Appreciating
that “pile” in front of us is more peaceful than pursuing the
ones that are always just ahead of us. October in the next year........This fall we were finalizing our “walking trails” by marking them with color codes to each different trail. All our trails start at the main hall. Whether you just turn around and return on the same path, which is the case of our shorter trails, or whether the trail is different for its whole length ( as our longer ones), they all eventually return to the main hall, where they began. (Even if you are lost, we’ll still come and find you and get you back!) I couldn’t help but reflect upon the parallels between the trails we have, and out lives in general. We take many different paths, some more and some less traveled, but they still always lead back to the place of beginning, cycling in the oneness that is God.
Thanksgiving
….As we enter this time of the year, with its holidays and
special occasions, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the demands of
it all, and not have time to reflect on and appreciate the reasons
we celebrate these days. What
a great country we live in that has recognized “thanksgiving”
and “spiritual hope” to the extent that we have national days
off, and attempt as a nation to reflect values that are spiritual
and not material. Yes,
we overemphasis the material in these occasions, but that does not
diminish the overriding values that our society is built on.
May we take hope from this past we have built, and
today plant a seed of our own to continue the spiritual journey that
the
November…our
first project for this winter is fixing up a better “intensive
grazing system,” for our cows.
Basically this means trying to fence in smaller areas for our
cows to eat in, which utilizes our grass more efficiently.
To do so we will be building about 2 miles of fence, in
addition to the approximately 25 miles that we already have (and try
to maintain). That’s a
lot of fence, and much of it runs through woods and rocky areas,
which makes it hard to get to and check for repairs.
We also have well over one hundred gates to keep in working order.
I use to try and keep all of this ‘material’ stuff in a
complete state of readiness at all times, but I finally realized
that I was spending a lot of time and concern for no real reason,
since the cows were in only one area of fenced ground at any one
time. We’ve now
learned to just check and repair the area we’re going to use
next…which is another lesson in ‘line by line’, step by step,
work on what is before you today, and work on your future
‘todays’ when they arrive. Living
in the present moment does not mean doing nothing, as our purpose
for being here is to show our ‘ideal’ in the physical.
Living in the present moment is our acceptance of where we
are right now, our first step toward the peace and harmony that are
God’s promise.
Early
November…In March I noted the geese flying north, but now there
are large flocks all heading southward.
There’s a plaintive note to their constant sounds as they
travel by, as if to say ‘join us’.
Geese fly in a ‘v’ formation, to break the wind for the
whole group. The ones in
the front of this ‘v’ have the hardest job, so there is a
constant rotation throughout the group from the front positions to
the back. Most all of
nature exhibits this awareness and nurturing of the ‘whole’
group, with the individual being secondary.
Almost all spiritual teaching of all faiths emphasize this
same thought, that we are part of the whole (God), and as we care
for our neighbors we will all grow together.
A nice thought.
October
....….Well, six months has passed on this section of our web
site! Our “season”
has been quite busy, with more people being guests at the ranch, and
with time spent finishing up the many jobs we started last winter.
I always have felt that it is better to have too many things
lined up that we want to accomplish, and I like to put a timeline to
all our new “adventures”. However,
the years are teaching me about patience also.
Most everything seems to take longer than planned on, but
“here a little, there a little,” one small shovel full at a time
with will move great mountains.
A valuable lesson I am learning is that patience is an active
force, that grows as we use it. Since
our last entry in March, the dairy barn has been finished, and
March......March is one of my favorite times of the year because it heralds the coming of Spring, another chance to being again, to experience the growth of nature, in all its beauty and promise of life to come. The yellow daffodils are the first flowers to make a start, sometimes even having to bloom in the middle of the a blanket of snow. The birds begin their morning songs, the geese fly Northward with their group formations, and life starts to spring anew from many different directions.
March is also the start of many of our jobs, from calving, lambing, and kidding to making ready for the coming season. We've had a very busy winter this year, and we are in the final processes of completing the transformation of the diary barn into living quarters with a history, and finishing the renovation of the Randolph Homestead, a lodging adventure in what we like to think of as "farm family faith." We have moved the Russ Noah log cabin to the ranch, but as of now it still sits on the trailer used to transport it from the original location. We also still have to make the journey to the Kansas/Colorado border to pick up our original sheepherders wagon, which we are going to put down on the banks of the creek where the waters comes rolling over a small rock ledge, creating a constantly changing melody of moving water. The sheepherders wagons will be another "lodging adventure" that we will offer, where you may experience what is was like to live in a wagon, with no modern conveniences, and with a small herd of goats or sheep that you must keep fed and watered. Watch for more info on all of these on the website here in the next few months. Middle of February......The early spring has accelerated the biological clock of many of the farm animals. The chickens, peacocks, and turkeys are all parading around trying to impress the females of their species. In the case of our two peacocks, which are both males, they have decided that our chickens and guineas must just be small peacocks, and so they spread their feathers in an impressive display of beauty. When you spend time around the bird, you can easily understand the use of the phrase "proud as a peacock", as they are not shy in showing off their natural attributes. If you get a chance when you come and visit the ranch, take the time to look closely at some of the peacock feathers in our office, or hopefully observe the birds themselves. There is tremendous beauty in the coloration and textures of their feathers, a beauty that makes one feel that they have seen a portion of God's handiwork. Early February .........We've got a number of other projects started this winter. It may be a case of lots of irons in the fire, but all of them will eventually be done and will add their part to the purpose of the ranch. We are remodeling and restoring an old family farm homestead from the 1930's that is located on the east side of the ranch. This includes a great old barn, a chicken house, 2 old log shelters used for small animals, and an old farm house. We are trying to maintain the original feel of the homestead, while modernizing some of the house ( such as a new bathroom). We want to rent out the homestead like we do our main ranch house, complete with chickens and some goats or sheep, so that those staying there might experience some of the feel of that era, and might also have a chance to feel the voice of God, that voice which can be heard in the songs of nature. We hope to have the Randolph homestead ready to go by late spring or early summer. End of January......January has been a great month to work outside because of the weather. It has allowed us to start a number of jobs that normally would wait till the spring. Of primary importance has been the conversion of an old dairy barn on the ranch into living quarters for our new ranch managers, Chad & Tabby, and their two twin boys. They are presently living in the main ranch house, and we hope to have this conversion done by March or April, so they may move in this spring. Tabby has voiced that she doesn't even unpack anymore, but just lives out of the boxes, as they have moved several times in the last few years. We hope that they will be able to settle in here, as they bring many talents, and a great spirit with them. As we are converting the dairy barn over, we are keeping a portion of it in its original condition so as to maintain a history of its purpose. One side of the milking parlor has been retained, and we are restoring the old milking equipment and conditions in this area. We have taken some liberties to make this section more people friendly, as it is part of the living room of the house now! Middle of January......We have baby goats popping out everywhere, which is great, and an easier task when the weather co-operates. January can be a month of variation and we have had to deliver animals in zero degree temperature and 60 to 70 degree temperatures. We will save more young when the weather is warmer, even though we have pen areas out of the wind, with heat lamps available fore the kids. In cold weather we try to clean and dry off the newborns, make sure the mothers is milking by stripping her udder until there is a free flow, and moving the new family for a day or so to an individual pen area. In nature most newborns have "resilience", the ability to adapt to whatever conditions they have to face. Another great lesson to be learned! Early January ........."to everything there is a season" is a favorite verse of mine, and very evident when you live outdoors with nature. Part of the beauty of winter is its "lack" of growth, which gives us a chance to catch up with our jobs in progress before the start of another growing season. We need the "lack" of something to appreciate the "having" of that something. December......I always call December 22nd the first day of Spring, which gives me a much shorter winter season than most people have. As of this date the amount of daylight we have starts to increase again each day, so the 'spring' warm up is just around the corner, waiting to happen! And...a part of the beauty of the Ozarks is its ability to go along with my early Spring. At anytime in the winter months we may have a warm day of 60 or 70 degrees. A promise of hope, and gratitude, for what is now, and what is to come. November....It's that time of year...deer season. In this part of the country it is an event unto itself. Schools are closed for a few days, and most activities definitely slow down, or cease to happen, for the duration of the season. For many hunters, the harvesting of a deer is secondary to the experience of being outside in nature, and the shared companionship of friends and family. Of course, as the season nears, the deer population starts to move around more, both for natural reproductive reasons, and because more people are in the woods. On the ranch we always have a lot of deer, and they are pleasurable to come upon and observe. However, the other day my observation became at a slightly closer proximity than I would normally have. I was traveling in my pickup truck on one the the gravel roads on our place. It was a warm fall day and my window was down to enjoy the good weather. On my passenger side of the truck was an open field, while on my side of the truck, about 20 feel away was a thick bushy tree line. Without any warning, a fairly large buck deer with a good set of antlers came crashing thru the underbrush at a high rate of speed, and landed his running leap about 10 feet from my truck, right next to my window, and still very obviously moving toward me. All I had time to do was cover my head with my left arm and fall over to my right side, because I was reacting on the assumption that this deer had a good chance of jumping into the window in the front seat with me. However, his next leap took him over the top of my full sized pickup cab, with quite a bit of thunking as his hoofs struck the top of the cab. My thought were then, first, "I made it",. secondly, how badly damaged is the truck, and thirdly, does the deer have a broken leg or two from the experience. As I looked into the field and watch him run away, I could tell that maybe he was bruised, but nothing was broken. As for the truck, aside from a hoof print and a few scratches in the top of the cab, it was fine. As for myself, it was another one of those experiences that only nature can provide, and I was thankful for what didn't happen, and appreciative of the ability of an animal to leap over a truck on short notice while traveling at a high rate of speed. Truly a reminder of peace, harmony, beauty, and the variety of experiences that abound around the ranch.
October......It is the fall of the year, a time of very warm days and still , very cool nights. I'm staying overnight at one of our spots on the ranch where beauty comes together in many different forms to create a peacefulness not found elsewhere. The creek here comes off a rock ledge and forms a pool of still waters at the bottom of it. As the water flows over the ledge, there are constant, yet always changing, sights and sounds...the interplay of the rocks, ledges, and white swirls of water, all being framed by the changing color of the leaves of autumn, and all accompanied by the sound of running water, a God given form of music that strikes a chord in all of us. Add to this the rising sun, and fog laying over the field, and the warmth of an early morning campfire, and it becomes an experience to be felt, to be lived September......When you live outdoors with nature and wake up before dawn, there is this beautiful time when all the birds, and animals, join the transition from darkness to light. It is truly a time of tremendous change, a movement from silence to song, and from rest to activity, from night to day. What is it in the start of a new day that makes it something to embrace, to look forward to? Why does the dawn have so much more allure than the evening? To me the morning, the rising of the sun, represents a new beginning...it represents hope. Hope is the feeling that things will be better, that life will improve, that God and a reason for being does exist. Hope is our desire to return to God, to the essence of the seed that we are. Hope is our attuning to the energy that God displays all around us. Hope is facing the sun, spreading your arms, closing your eyes, and feeling the warmth and light flow thru you. June......During haying season the weather becomes all important, as we work to get all our grass baled without being rained on, which reduces the quality of the hay as feed for our animals. It takes about 3 days to take a field from standing grass to cured dried day. The grass must be cut, left to dry in the sun for a couple of days, and then baled. At this time of year I spend my mornings watching the weather channel, trying to pick the correct time periods between forecasted rains. What stuck me as unusual, and even a little sad, was the way the weather channel now uses fear to try to get us to keep watching. All their descriptions are aimed at trying to get us to be worried or concerned about what could possibly happen, and nothing is mentioned about the beauty of the weather, the God inspired change in energy that is the only constant in our experience of the weather. Upon further reflection though I realized that they are using fear of the weather, not because it is universal or normal, not because we want to embrace fear, but because it is unusual, and therefore gets our attention. The beauty of the weather, the beauty of nature, this constant kaleidoscope of the changes in God's environment, are so normal and taken for granted that we fail to appreciate it, we fail to give our attention to its beauty and energy. What a great world we live in, when we take the times to appreciate, to be thankful. May.....During this time of year we incubate duck and chicken eggs, and then raise them up after they have hatched. There's a definite appeal to baby poultry, a harmony to their peepings, and a beauty in their softness, before their downyness turns into real feathers. With our ducks, we raise them inside, with a doorway open during the day to an outside pen. They will hardly ever leave the inside pen for the outside world, even though that's where the sunlight, bugs, and water are. We have to push them out the door the first few times, and even then they will try to turn and come back in. Why?--because they are afraid of the unknown, of change, even though it is a movement toward the very nature of what they are, of what they wish to be. What did I learn from the ducks? That it's normal to be fearful, to resist change. But by facing our fears we will reach the sunshine and the water. We may turn and run back in a time or two {or three}, but with patience, with persistence, with God's pushing us out the door, we may feel some of the beauty and harmony that is our true nature. End of April.....This morning I was thinking about the nature and beauty of hope. This came about as I was reflecting on the need to have our dog of 15 years put to sleep. On a ranch or farm, where a person deals on a daily basis with animals, and their life and death, at some point there must be thought given to "what" the nature of life in animals is. Though I'm sure many will think otherwise, I feel that we humans are the only form of life given "awareness of self" by our Creator. All life is a reflection of the energy of God, but I feel only people have the awareness of pain and pleasure, of good and bad, and thereby the ability to learn, grow, and change, to become more like God, to grow toward and in his image. How did this bit of insight give me hope? By seeing in nature the harmony and flow of both life and death, the naturalness of what we perceive as "problems", and the beauty of our God-given ability to learn from our problems, and change. How very hopeful! And was there sadness brought about by the death, the passing of our dog? Very much so....but I know that hope only exists because of our sadness. April..... With the help of some very good people we have been working these last few days toward erecting a windmill that was purchased used about two years ago. I say very good people because these folks spend much of their time helping others, and as such are not only helpful, but a source of both hope and inspiration. As is usually the case, the windmill is taking more time and labor than first imagined {of course}. We spent two days adapting the windmill itself to the tower it will be on. It will still take a couple more days to actually stand up the tower and concrete it into the ground. We will shorten the tower from 40 feet to 30 feet tall, which I'm sure will still give us all enough feeling of excitement as we sway in the wind 30 feet off the ground trying to grease and maintain the mill itself. But it will be worth the effort, because its purpose will be twofold. First, to do actual physical labor {such as pumping water}, and more important yet, to slowly rotate high in the air, to plant a seed of peacefulness in all who drive down the road and see it in front of them as they enter the ranch. Middle of April.....We're now making the shift from newborn calves to newborn goats. We have about 15 delivered already, and will probably end up with around 45 young ones when we are done. I always marvel about how "cute" God makes all young creatures. We instinctively feel a value and a love toward them. I think it is "built in" us, and few can deny the feelings of beauty and peace inspired by the very young.
Early April .....I was up this morning at 5:00 to do my usual start of the day: Reading, then prayers and meditation. After losing another
calf the other day, I was working on putting the physical in the proper perspective, of realizing that it is "natural" that all seeds don't grow, that all calves don't live, but nature does give an increase to its own. Another lesson, of course, in
my will versus accepting the direction of God's will.
As I was starting my meditations, the sounds of the early morning seeped thru the door....there were so many birds singing that it was hard to
listen to an individual call. The morning was warm, so I felt no choice but to move out to the porch, to be in the middle of the beauty and promise of both the start of the day, and the start of another Spring. |
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