Fragmented Memories

I have been on a week long vacation to an area where I lived for 33 years.  So many things have changed, some things have stayed the same, some things are the same as they were decades before we arrived.

As we drove the back roads, fragments of memory would arise as we went past this turn in the road, that road sign, the house tucked back in, almost out of sight.  What was the occasion, or what meeting for which cause.  Emotions would surface; some stressful, what was the trigger?, what was the feeling?

It seemed the older memories were more complete than the more recent and this made me feel old.  We often hear that "old" people remember what happened eons ago but not what happened yesterday.  Is it all just part of the brain holding on to happy memories and discarding the rest?

My mother said people should keep moving to different places so memories of, "the way things used to be", wouldn't prematurely age them.  It worked for her; she lived to 88+ and never got old.  If you moved often enough you wouldn't have to go nuts trying to remember what restaurant or shop was here before this one (only 3 years ago).

I thought as I roamed my old haunts, I would see people I knew and familiar faces.  It only happened once.  Maybe I have forgotten faces as well.

I read once, that sheep could remember up to a dozen faces for many years (even if they moved).  I wonder if other memories are fragmented for them?

Raking the Barn

Every day I rake the barn.  It is very enjoyable for me.  It is funny that it is the last job many people would want to do and for some reason I hate it when I have to ask someone to do it for me.

  My young friend from across the pasture seems to like to do it but I am not sure what part he likes.  John cleaned the barn for almost 6 weeks after I broke my ankle, and didn't seem to mind, but I don't think he misses not doing it anymore.

For me, raking the barn, is very relaxing and rewarding, like spinning wool but different.  When I rake, I feel I am raking a zen garden and it is especially rewarding where the animals have spilled minerals, and the silver lines stand out in the sunlight.  I wonder if any of the animals feel like they are resting in a zen garden afterwards?

I have always liked sweeping too, especially at an entrance of a building.  When I see a shop keeper sweeping the stoop before opening his/her shop, it is very welcoming.  I loved sweeping the small ramp to the Fiber Shed every morning as the campers were arriving.

Someone, the other day, was talking about sweeping dirt floors, and how awful they thought that would be.  Not for me, I would enjoy it but I would want to wet my broom first I think, if it was really dusty.

Not sure what it is that feels so good about raking or sweeping.  I hate vacuuming!, so it isn't  a cleaning thing.  Mopping is O.K. but not as relaxing as raking or sweeping.  Is it the sound?  The stroke?  I can hear and feel both, just thinking about it.  Some kind of mental or spiritual connection, I'm sure.

  So maybe I don't liking asking others to do it because I don't feel they have that same spiritual connection and without it, raking the barn could be just a stinky chore.

A Closer Look

Today, I was standing in front of the Fiber Shed and a hummingbird came up to me and hovered in front of me for 5 or 6 seconds, at close range trying to decide if the flowers on my shirt were real.  This is what he/she saw and I guess it does look inviting.

Later, I went up to the barn, with my camera,(surprise, surprise) and several of the animals came up to get a closer look at the camera.  

First Zorra, but she is curious about everything.

 

Then came Amelia at a clip.

Norma Jean wanted a really close look. 

Even Black was interested.

 Cher and Araucana just wanted to pose.

I wish I had caught the hummingbird on camera but that would be asking for too much.

Labor Day

It has been a pretty busy day for Labor Day.

We have had a family staying in the cabin for the weekend.  They are from West Virginia and have goats and chickens.  They are thinking about adding sheep, so they picked Cabin Spring Farm for lodging while vacationing in the area.  I told them to bring farm clothes so they could trim sheep hooves while they were here and they took me up on it.  We did a few the first morning they were here and a few more this morning.  My business advisor says we should charge more when we let them have a unique farm experience, "like a dude ranch", she says.  Somehow, I don't think people would fall for that.  So we let our guests help out for free and they were so great.

One of the mental stresses I have had, while being out of commission, with my broken ankle, has been not being able to keep up with animal needs.  Today I feel great.

One of the kids in the family this weekend, is a 6 year old who knows how to crochet. so she came up to the fiber shed and spun some yarn to crochet with.  As they were leaving, two women came for a farm tour.

John is still trying to keep up with the grass, so he has been mowing a lot today.

 Not much relaxing yet, and we didn't take the boat to the beach, but we are planning hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill for dinner.  That will be good enough for a Labor Day celebration.