It’s 8 pm and the sun is just starting to slip behind the hill across the road. It’s still hot and buggy, but the sun is softer and the heat not as oppressive.
The sheep leave the barn for the first time all day and follow me to the back pasture. I open the gates but they wait for me to lead the way.
I follow the footpath between the clumps of pale purple Bee Balm. The sheep led by Issachar, in a line behind me.
Fanny and Lulu take their time, following on their own terms.
When I stop and turn towards them, the sheep stop too. Then they scatter, noses down looking for the choicest, low growing, grasses and wildflowers. There’s lots of clover, a favorite of the both the sheep and donkeys.
They’ll go back and forth from the barn to the pasture through the night.
In the morning, Fanny will have bubbles coming from her mouth and Issachar lips will be lined with foam from eating so much clover.
It will make him look like he’s smiling.
I love the sometimes silent conversations you have with the sheep. What a beautiful connection
Yes, LoisJean, I have found that silence is sometimes the key with animals.