reasons to be thankful.

1. biking in a farm hand-me-down dress to collect chicken eggs after lunch.
2. milking goats to the tune of the sun-rising.
3. sitting on abandoned couches in the middle of the yard as the big ol' texas sun tucks itself to bed.
4. folks who think dirty farmers are beautiful.
   
5. teaching city kids about compost.
6. having pre-schoolers close their eyes, inhale the scent of 35 tons of turkey manure, and watch the delight/disgust in their eyes.
7. snake-skin boots.
8. progressive tea parties with farmers who look like gypsies when they trade in their overalls and carhartts for skirts.
   
9. wendell berry's mad farmer liberation front.
10. farm-brewed kombucha.
11. friday morning baptist hymn sings.
12. beautiful community composed of broken folks (ie the body of Christ).
13. rocking chairs.
14. laundry lines.
15. the never ending pot o' coffee.
16. others who appreciate agriculture as art.
17. reclaiming the abandoned places of the kingdom by growing vegetables on vacant lots, in front lawns and old busted-up television sets.
    
18. God. neighbors. the opportunity to love and be loved on a daily basis. and give thanks.
    

Give Me Frost

This chilly weekend has offered multiple surprised for the lovely weekenders.

1. Our beloved turkeys, who are growing so fast in body but not brain, have discovered the art of exploring and their cousins the chickens.

2. Our strapping buck, Raz (short for Rasputin), has impregnated two females. Eliza and Frosty. If you have never witnessed a breeding session between goats, I strongly urge you to find a local goat breeder. It is a sight, and smell, to see. We are happy to help produce future kids, but we are also obliged to laugh at goats urinating on themselves for courtship.

3. We say goodbye to Verde Valley School from Arizona. A boarding school that has been living in the Nicarauge House all week and sharing in life with us at the Farm. They worked out, played hard, and were all around pleasant.

4. Saturday afternoon the Freshman Leadership Organization from Baylor University visited the Farm for two hours to volunteer. With thirty-one students we were able to accomplish four very necessary tasks. My favorite moment was watching ten or eleven freshman girls from the suburbs herd twenty goats from one pasture to another. The guys lifted heavy material and thankfully one guy carried knived and tools in his truck that came in handy. They had a good time and we were grateful to have the help and excitement. They finished off their afternoon, like any good college freshman group would: with a wrestling match and huddle. See below.




Cheers and Hurrahs,

Melyssa