Maria Wulf Full Moon Fiber Art

The sheep were lined up along the outside of the barn and inside the pole barn this morning, trying to find the best place to stay cool.

The cats barely move from the back porch and the chickens find shade in and around the apple tree.

Jon, Zinnia and Bud spend the hottest part of the day in his office which has an airconditioner.  I keep the curtains closed and the fans going in the rest of the house for me and Fate.  We’re a bit more heat tolerant than they are.

Yesterday Jon pulled up a chair (the one the donkeys often turn over and use to scratch themselves on) in the barnyard to try out his new camera.

Before he could even think to take a picture, Lulu came over to him.   The donkeys love attention and after the cold winter when all of our patience is short,  it’s easy to forget that sitting with the donkeys is a peaceful and nourishing way to spend time.

So yesterday Jon and I decided to be more conscious of spending a little time each day sitting with the animals.

Today we sat under the apple tree with Zinnia and Fate.  The hens quickly joined us and so did the wind.  It rang Ed’s frying pan windchime and got the branches and leaves dancing over our heads.

Fate gave me a classic Border Collie stare waiting for me to tell her to “get the sheep” this morning in the back pasture.

Sometimes it’s just luck. I was filling up the chicken’s water bowl when I saw the hens in the barnyard through the fence.  I was taking a picture of them when Lulu walked by.

I always count the sheep when I bring them in from the pasture to make sure they’re all back. This morning it was Liam who didn’t come back with the rest of the sheep, this afternoon it was Lori.

Liam didn’t seem to realize the rest of the sheep were back at the barn.  I moved him along walking behind him with my arms up.  At first he hesitated and tried to get around me.  But then he looked around and saw he was all alone in the pasture.

He called out and some of the sheep back at the barn answered.  That’s when he started running back to the barn.

Healthy sheep do not want to be alone.

While Liam didn’t know he was alone, Lori seemed content to be just on the other side of the gate after the rest of the sheep came through it this afternoon. I closed the gate so the other sheep wouldn’t go back out because I knew Lori wouldn’t want to stay in the pasture if she couldn’t see the other sheep.

After all the rest of the sheep went into the polebarn it didn’t take Lori long to come to the gate.   I opened it just enough so she could run in.

And she did.

I took Fate to the Vet for her shots this morning.  It was the first time in over two years that I was able to go into the office.

I imagine it’s easier and more efficient for the doctors and technicians to get their work done without us people there.  And Dr. Suzanne Fariello said that some people prefer to wait in their cars and read.

It certainly isn’t necessary for me to go into the Vet’s office for a routine visit. And I did cringe a bit when I was in the small exam room so close to two other people even though we had our masks on.

It will take some getting used to again.

I always enjoy talking to  Suzanne. She’s impressive in how she’s grown her Veterinary business.  There is an ease to how the office runs and you can tell by the attitudes of the people who work there that it is a good environment to be in.

I also appreciate the young interns learning how to hold Fate and draw blood from her.  Fate is content to be held and scratched and cooed at even if she is getting poked and prodded.  Nicole one of the technicians, who used to farm sit for us, always makes sure to trim Fate’s rogue nail that grows longer than the rest.

And I got to see Jon’s photos hanging on the wall in the exam room of Red, Fate and the sheep.  It took seeing those pictures to realize how my flock has changed.  The four rescue Romneys were there, thick with two years worth of wool.  I had to look closely to distinguish Zelda from Liam.

Suzanne spoke lovingly of Red.  Although she only saw him when he came to the Vet, she said he was one of her favorite dogs and she likes having his photo in the office.

It was such a strange thing the first time I went to the Vet when covid hit and I had to wait outside. Now it’s unusual to go inside. And for a moment, I couldn’t remember the names of all four of the Romneys.  I don’t need to think about Red every day but it was nice to see him again in the picture.

I find it curious what we remember and the things we forget. And how we adapt to change so what was once natural can, over time, become unfamiliar.

When Fate was a puppy she used to sleep on my shoes all the time.  When we got back from the Vet, I found her under the dining room table using my sneakers as a pillow. Maybe, after getting three different needles this morning, she was finding comfort in something she was remembering too.