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.