We had fun exploring and checking out all the creatures.
Friday, July 24, 2015
Thursday, July 23, 2015
A Place to Call Home: Chapter 2
Mindy and Warren emerged from their cabin hand in hand, ready to face the aftermath of the storm. They paused at the door to survey the farm. Branches and leaves were scattered all about and a milk pail was laying in the middle of the yard. Warren noticed several boards came loose from the barn roof and the door had blown open. Mindy could already see hail mangled plants in the garden and shuddered at the thought of their corn fields that were surly shredded to pieces. Smoke curled up on the horizon, they would have to keep an eye on that. Lightening could start terrifying wild fires.
50 years out here on the prairie, 50 years of similar storms, but the shock of seeing the damage never lessened. But they had learned a thing or two about how to recover from even a wild tornado. The first task was to check the livestock and food storage. Without the animals and food they were hopeless. The cold cellar door was still latched tight, but they checked for water damage inside. All was well, Next they checked Mindy's chickens. They were all huddled in the corner and a tad wet, but they would be fine come morning. She was glad for the extra latch they had installed.
Warren paused to let Mindy rest on the bench he had built by her chicken coop and glanced back out at the smoke. He guessed it was two or three miles away, but it was dark black now and growing. Smoke like that came from more than just lightening striking a tree. The thought that it could be a neighbors house or barn was enough to make his stomach sick.
Inside the barn puddles had created mud showing the location of each leak in the roof. Most were still dripping and a small river seemed to be running through the south west corner under the milk cow. She eyed up Warren and swatted her tail in dissatisfaction. The reddish brown cow seemed to think she owned the barn and reminded Warren daily. The three pigs along the east wall slept like nothing had happened. The tan barn cat was sitting on the belly of the largest pig licking her paws. The horses were the only creatures to really show how upset they were over the storm. The appaloosa mare was shaking her head and rocking back and forth, clearly irritated. Mindy started talking to her and reached out to clam her. The pair of draft horses still had their ears pinned back. Frost, the older of the two, was trembling. Warren panicked when he noticed the hole in the wall at the back of their stall. It appeared that Bentley had kicked the wall and was now bleeding.
"Mindy please bring my toolkit over, I need to get this bleeding stopped," Warren asked, voice shaking. These horses were his most valuable tool. He relied on them for all his field work and for getting supplies from town. Mindy wobbled toward the small room they had separated off as the tool room. It was darker in there, but Warren always put his tools away neatly and she knew just where it would be. She took one step further as she reached out for the box of vet supplies but stumbled and cried out in pain.
Warren hurried over with the lantern scolding himself for asking her to get the toolbox. But what he found in the tool room shocked him.
50 years out here on the prairie, 50 years of similar storms, but the shock of seeing the damage never lessened. But they had learned a thing or two about how to recover from even a wild tornado. The first task was to check the livestock and food storage. Without the animals and food they were hopeless. The cold cellar door was still latched tight, but they checked for water damage inside. All was well, Next they checked Mindy's chickens. They were all huddled in the corner and a tad wet, but they would be fine come morning. She was glad for the extra latch they had installed.
Warren paused to let Mindy rest on the bench he had built by her chicken coop and glanced back out at the smoke. He guessed it was two or three miles away, but it was dark black now and growing. Smoke like that came from more than just lightening striking a tree. The thought that it could be a neighbors house or barn was enough to make his stomach sick.
Inside the barn puddles had created mud showing the location of each leak in the roof. Most were still dripping and a small river seemed to be running through the south west corner under the milk cow. She eyed up Warren and swatted her tail in dissatisfaction. The reddish brown cow seemed to think she owned the barn and reminded Warren daily. The three pigs along the east wall slept like nothing had happened. The tan barn cat was sitting on the belly of the largest pig licking her paws. The horses were the only creatures to really show how upset they were over the storm. The appaloosa mare was shaking her head and rocking back and forth, clearly irritated. Mindy started talking to her and reached out to clam her. The pair of draft horses still had their ears pinned back. Frost, the older of the two, was trembling. Warren panicked when he noticed the hole in the wall at the back of their stall. It appeared that Bentley had kicked the wall and was now bleeding.
"Mindy please bring my toolkit over, I need to get this bleeding stopped," Warren asked, voice shaking. These horses were his most valuable tool. He relied on them for all his field work and for getting supplies from town. Mindy wobbled toward the small room they had separated off as the tool room. It was darker in there, but Warren always put his tools away neatly and she knew just where it would be. She took one step further as she reached out for the box of vet supplies but stumbled and cried out in pain.
Warren hurried over with the lantern scolding himself for asking her to get the toolbox. But what he found in the tool room shocked him.
To be continued...
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Friday, July 17, 2015
Critter Tale
Our weekend project was building a house for Bubba Duck. However, he much prefers being in the yard as close to people as possible! He even made a trip into the kitchen...
He has adjusted to his house and we keep him there at night for safety. We also don't want him running away again!
We found some forest green paint and his little green army tent turned out pretty cute!
The rest of the critters are doing well and the chicks are counting down the days until they move out side too. I am looking forward to putting them to work as slug control!
That's all for this week! God bless!
Thursday, July 16, 2015
A Place to Call Home: Chapter 1
The sun was just creeping up through the trees, casting warm sprinkles of light onto the sandy earth. The damp figure decided stepping out into the field to catch more warmth would be worth the risk. But only for a short time and only if there were weeds near by to duck into... just in case...
She was so tired and felt like she might keel over at any moment. Her whole body hurt and it seemed that her legs were just one scratch after another. At least it was better now that she could see where she was walking. But she feared someone would see her, and she didn't know if she would have the energy to run. Fear. Was it fear? She didn't know any more. She just wanted to survive.
She let her mind wander back, for just one moment. She felt like the tiny calf last winter that she found lost and alone in the wood pasture. It had been crying and was covered in mud and scratches from trying to find its mother. But the mother was dead. So she had taken the calf home, washed it off and nursed it back to health. She longed for someone to come and take her home and care for her... But that seemed to be were the similarities in their stories stopped. She no longer had a home. She had no where to go. She had no one. Not any more.
She walked all day. Sticking close to the woods and stopping to drink from the creek frequently. It was hot now and her belly was starting the sound like a mad bear. But she just kept walking. She was heading west, that much she knew. She figured she would just keep following the creek. But as the day drug on she wondered more and more where she would go. She didn't want to spend another night alone in the woods. As a young girl her mama had always told her she was never alone. God was always with her. She had believed that, she had prayed, read the Bible and sung hymns. But now she was't so sure God was even there. And if He was, she was pretty sure He didn't care about her or have time to be there in the woods with her.
Mama had always said God would provide and take care of them. She had said over and over that God had blessed them so much. But those things must not be true. If God was like her mama said, then why was her family dead, her home gone and she was starving and alone in the woods with no where to go? No, she thought, even if God was real, she didn't want to talk to Him. If He didn't save her family He wouldn't help her now. And with her mind made up she trudged on. Alone. Maybe if she got far enough away she could find a town and a job. She didn't care. In fact, she was wondering now why she was trying so hard to survive... What was the point?
She was so tired and felt like she might keel over at any moment. Her whole body hurt and it seemed that her legs were just one scratch after another. At least it was better now that she could see where she was walking. But she feared someone would see her, and she didn't know if she would have the energy to run. Fear. Was it fear? She didn't know any more. She just wanted to survive.
She let her mind wander back, for just one moment. She felt like the tiny calf last winter that she found lost and alone in the wood pasture. It had been crying and was covered in mud and scratches from trying to find its mother. But the mother was dead. So she had taken the calf home, washed it off and nursed it back to health. She longed for someone to come and take her home and care for her... But that seemed to be were the similarities in their stories stopped. She no longer had a home. She had no where to go. She had no one. Not any more.
She walked all day. Sticking close to the woods and stopping to drink from the creek frequently. It was hot now and her belly was starting the sound like a mad bear. But she just kept walking. She was heading west, that much she knew. She figured she would just keep following the creek. But as the day drug on she wondered more and more where she would go. She didn't want to spend another night alone in the woods. As a young girl her mama had always told her she was never alone. God was always with her. She had believed that, she had prayed, read the Bible and sung hymns. But now she was't so sure God was even there. And if He was, she was pretty sure He didn't care about her or have time to be there in the woods with her.
Mama had always said God would provide and take care of them. She had said over and over that God had blessed them so much. But those things must not be true. If God was like her mama said, then why was her family dead, her home gone and she was starving and alone in the woods with no where to go? No, she thought, even if God was real, she didn't want to talk to Him. If He didn't save her family He wouldn't help her now. And with her mind made up she trudged on. Alone. Maybe if she got far enough away she could find a town and a job. She didn't care. In fact, she was wondering now why she was trying so hard to survive... What was the point?
~~~
Mindy struggled to get her old fingers to curl around the last egg gently enough to pick it up. Turning towards the chicken house door she slowly hobbled along, stopping every few steps for a break. Her joints seemed to creek just as bad as the rusty old door that she pushed shut to protect her hens from predators. Last week a fox had come, in the middle of the day, and made a meal of one of her girls. Her gun had been ready as always, but swinging it up to her shoulder and squinting her old eyes to see had given the sly critter more then enough time to flee. Warren had been in the barn, like he was now, working on a new saddle. She worried about him. She knew his fingers where just as bad as hers, but he never complained, and just worked harder to fill orders. The demand for his intricate yet functional saddles continued to grow. Cowboys from across the state were coming to Warren for their own custom saddles and spreading the word. She wondered how much longer they could keep going. But with those thoughts she stopped and thanked God for all He had blessed them with and received peace knowing He would continue to provide.
Off to the west a storm was building, the dark thunder could rising high. Mindy kept an eye on it as she fed the goats and carried water inside for washing dishes. The trees behind the house had started rustling and rattling and dust clouds jumped up here and there across the freshly harvested wheat field. Mindy had seen many bad storms come across the prairie, enough to know this one was packing a punch. Mindy closed the two cabin windows and struggled to lift the heavy boards into the wooden notches. Warren had built these notches into the walls to secure the windows shut in storms like this. Next she checked the yard and area around the barn for any lose objects. She yanked on the chicken coop door one more time to make sure it was not going to fly open and headed for the barn.
The barn was small and simple, like everything on the farm. It too was built for surviving storms. Warren was bent over his work bench punching small holes into a thick piece of leather with his favorite awl. Mindy had got the awl for him on his 60th birthday. She had to send away to a company in the east, and impatiently waited, praying it would come on time. Thankfully the package had been waiting in town when they made their monthly trip for supplies. Warren had almost cried realizing how much thought she had put into choosing and ordering the simple yet important tool. That had been over ten years ago.
"How's it looking out there?" Warrens deep voice drawled, bringing her back from her memories. "'bout as good as it sounds," replied Mindy as thunder growled closer. Warren looked up and glanced past Mindy to catch a peak at the sky. That color said a lot. Together they packed up the leather into the large wooden boxes under the work bench. It was important to keep the leather from getting wet and the barn roof often leaked.
Warren and Mindy stepped outside the barn holding hands, Mindy smiled, the only reason they survived so many storms out in this rugged land was by holding hands. The simple gesture, that couples often lost after the first few years, was a reminder that together they were stronger. But most of all, it was God who joined those hands together who was the real reason they made it through life.
The rain had started, slow at first, but then pounding down harder and harder as the storm rolled in. Inside the dark cabin the old couple had to almost yell to be heard. The wind beat the rain at the sides and roof of the cabin and howled around every edge it could find. Suddenly the sound changed and it became impossible to talk over the violent hail. The good news was storms like this never lasted long. But both occupants in the tiny vulnerable cabin had already switched their thoughts to how much damage there might be to repair.
Off to the west a storm was building, the dark thunder could rising high. Mindy kept an eye on it as she fed the goats and carried water inside for washing dishes. The trees behind the house had started rustling and rattling and dust clouds jumped up here and there across the freshly harvested wheat field. Mindy had seen many bad storms come across the prairie, enough to know this one was packing a punch. Mindy closed the two cabin windows and struggled to lift the heavy boards into the wooden notches. Warren had built these notches into the walls to secure the windows shut in storms like this. Next she checked the yard and area around the barn for any lose objects. She yanked on the chicken coop door one more time to make sure it was not going to fly open and headed for the barn.
The barn was small and simple, like everything on the farm. It too was built for surviving storms. Warren was bent over his work bench punching small holes into a thick piece of leather with his favorite awl. Mindy had got the awl for him on his 60th birthday. She had to send away to a company in the east, and impatiently waited, praying it would come on time. Thankfully the package had been waiting in town when they made their monthly trip for supplies. Warren had almost cried realizing how much thought she had put into choosing and ordering the simple yet important tool. That had been over ten years ago.
"How's it looking out there?" Warrens deep voice drawled, bringing her back from her memories. "'bout as good as it sounds," replied Mindy as thunder growled closer. Warren looked up and glanced past Mindy to catch a peak at the sky. That color said a lot. Together they packed up the leather into the large wooden boxes under the work bench. It was important to keep the leather from getting wet and the barn roof often leaked.
Warren and Mindy stepped outside the barn holding hands, Mindy smiled, the only reason they survived so many storms out in this rugged land was by holding hands. The simple gesture, that couples often lost after the first few years, was a reminder that together they were stronger. But most of all, it was God who joined those hands together who was the real reason they made it through life.
The rain had started, slow at first, but then pounding down harder and harder as the storm rolled in. Inside the dark cabin the old couple had to almost yell to be heard. The wind beat the rain at the sides and roof of the cabin and howled around every edge it could find. Suddenly the sound changed and it became impossible to talk over the violent hail. The good news was storms like this never lasted long. But both occupants in the tiny vulnerable cabin had already switched their thoughts to how much damage there might be to repair.
To be continued...
Come back next week for Chapter 2.
Monday, July 13, 2015
A Quote to Ponder
"Indeed, until someone tries it for himself, it is incredible what dignity there is in an old hat, what virtue in a time-worn coat, and how savory the dinner-table can be made without sirloin steaks or cranberry tarts." Ten Acres Enough
Friday, July 10, 2015
Critter Tale
Chicks
The chicks are growing so fast! We are building them a coop since they have already started jumping out of the wash tub. We did lose one of the smallest, not sure what happened to it... Sad to be loosing critters... But we are thankful for the healthy ones we have!
Ducks
The crazy news this week is about the duck!! On June 16th our big white Pekin duck, Bubba, disappeared... We had given up looking figuring he had been eaten... But this week we saw a post on Facebook saying someone found a friendly white duck in the park, 20 MILES AWAY... Could it be Bubba?? 20 miles away, 21 days later???
Bubba loves getting his face rubbed and he hates water. So we figured it would be easy to tell. Sure enough, it's Bubba!!! We couldn't believe it!! Bubba is home now safe!!
Bubba loves getting his face rubbed and he hates water. So we figured it would be easy to tell. Sure enough, it's Bubba!!! We couldn't believe it!! Bubba is home now safe!!
 |
| Talking to Bubba about his adventure |
Mr. Bear
The bear came to visit again, this time in the middle of the day... Hmm... He better just keep moving through. Neat to see wildlife, but bears make me a little nervous with the kids and critters in the yard all the time...
 |
| Mr. Bear just strolling through |
Thursday, July 9, 2015
A Place to Call Home: Introduction
A Novel. For those who enjoy stepping back in time...
Coons calling up and down the creek was the only sound breaking the otherwise still night. Even the cottonwood leaves seemed froze in place and not even a cricket chirped. It was chilly for mid-summer, yet the usual prairie breeze had been missing for days. Odd. That seemed to be the theme.
A small figure, bare toes just above the waters edge,peered into the dark. Looking. Watching. Trembling. What lay across the other side she didn't know, but she wasn't looking back. One foot plunged into the icy water and all seemed to break loose. An owl took up from a near by tree, old wings beating hard. A bull frog launched himself into the muddy weeds and the coons scattered. She was running now. Knee deep. Struggling she lunged forward and momentarily lost her breath as she sunk into what now seemed like an ocean.
A small figure, bare toes just above the waters edge,peered into the dark. Looking. Watching. Trembling. What lay across the other side she didn't know, but she wasn't looking back. One foot plunged into the icy water and all seemed to break loose. An owl took up from a near by tree, old wings beating hard. A bull frog launched himself into the muddy weeds and the coons scattered. She was running now. Knee deep. Struggling she lunged forward and momentarily lost her breath as she sunk into what now seemed like an ocean.
The old owl circled around and landed upstream to watch the flopping, splashing, sobbing little thing make it to the warm bank. Her dark hair dripped down her back and ripped clothes clung to her bony body. She paused to listen. She knew there were panthers out here, but that wasn't her concern.
Come back next week for Chapter 1...
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Friday, July 3, 2015
Critter Tale
This week with the critters started out great, but went down hill and hit a tree... but I think we learned a thing or two.
Chicks
6 fuzzy black chicks arrived on Sunday! Loud little things and they eat like crazy, but they fit right in with the rest of the crew. We hope they are all hens and we are looking forward to having our own supply of eggs and bug control in the garden!
Daffy Duck
Monday night we went to feed Daffy but opened the door to find a 6 foot long black snake stretched across the floor. We were thankful that Daffy came racing out the door unhurt. We removed the snake, checked for holes in the coop and secured the door. We were uneasy about the snake, but as big as Daffy has grown we were not too worried. We also like having the black snakes around for rodent control so we didn't kill this one. We should have... because Tuesday morning we knew something was wrong when Daffy wasn't peeping... The snake was no where to be found, but it has killed Daffy... Now I am so mad at that snake that I might just kill every snake I see for the next 10 years. It made us sick.
I grew up on a farm seeing animals die, even having to put animals down many times due to sickness. We also knew most of the animals were going to die for meat anyway. But when you work hard to rescue and save a critter and then its killed for no reason I get mad and can't stand it...
We are already planning to get more ducks. But not until we go snake hunting and build a better, more snake proof coop.
Hummingbirds
Good news though! We now see three hummingbirds at the feeder everyday. And they are sure to let us know when the feeder is empty! Even in the pouring rain those guys are out there zipping around!
Chicks
6 fuzzy black chicks arrived on Sunday! Loud little things and they eat like crazy, but they fit right in with the rest of the crew. We hope they are all hens and we are looking forward to having our own supply of eggs and bug control in the garden!
Daffy Duck
Monday night we went to feed Daffy but opened the door to find a 6 foot long black snake stretched across the floor. We were thankful that Daffy came racing out the door unhurt. We removed the snake, checked for holes in the coop and secured the door. We were uneasy about the snake, but as big as Daffy has grown we were not too worried. We also like having the black snakes around for rodent control so we didn't kill this one. We should have... because Tuesday morning we knew something was wrong when Daffy wasn't peeping... The snake was no where to be found, but it has killed Daffy... Now I am so mad at that snake that I might just kill every snake I see for the next 10 years. It made us sick.
I grew up on a farm seeing animals die, even having to put animals down many times due to sickness. We also knew most of the animals were going to die for meat anyway. But when you work hard to rescue and save a critter and then its killed for no reason I get mad and can't stand it...
We are already planning to get more ducks. But not until we go snake hunting and build a better, more snake proof coop.
Hummingbirds
Good news though! We now see three hummingbirds at the feeder everyday. And they are sure to let us know when the feeder is empty! Even in the pouring rain those guys are out there zipping around!
God Bless!
Thursday, July 2, 2015
Content or Complacent?
Often contentment and complacency are confused and mixed up. This is understandable since they both relate to satisfaction. But we need to be clear on the difference as we move toward godly contentment.
Contentment is good, it is godly, it is biblical. Complacency is dangerous.
As we learned in my last post on contentment, the definition of contentment is: pleased and satisfied : not needing more.
But on the other hand...
According to Merriam-Webster, complacency is "self-satisfaction especially when accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiencies." also "a feeling of being satisfied with how things are and not wanting to try to make them better."
Dictionary.com says complacency is "a feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of some potential danger, defect, or the like; self-satisfaction or smug satisfaction with an existing situation, condition, etc."
Proverbs 1:32 says "For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them."
The definition of complacency also reminds me of 1 Thessalonians 5:3 "For when they say, 'peace and safety!' then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape."
Let us be content with the blessings of God, but never deceived into complacency. As followers of Christ let us be satisfied in Christ, not in the things of this world. Be aware the satan's greatest tool is complacency, he tricks people into thinking life is great to keep them from seeing their need for our Savior.
Contentment is good, it is godly, it is biblical. Complacency is dangerous.
As we learned in my last post on contentment, the definition of contentment is: pleased and satisfied : not needing more.
But on the other hand...
According to Merriam-Webster, complacency is "self-satisfaction especially when accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiencies." also "a feeling of being satisfied with how things are and not wanting to try to make them better."
Dictionary.com says complacency is "a feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of some potential danger, defect, or the like; self-satisfaction or smug satisfaction with an existing situation, condition, etc."
Proverbs 1:32 says "For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them."
The definition of complacency also reminds me of 1 Thessalonians 5:3 "For when they say, 'peace and safety!' then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape."
Let us be content with the blessings of God, but never deceived into complacency. As followers of Christ let us be satisfied in Christ, not in the things of this world. Be aware the satan's greatest tool is complacency, he tricks people into thinking life is great to keep them from seeing their need for our Savior.
"Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man." Luke 21:36
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
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