Edna turns broody!!

Life here is always filled with new surprises. Today when doing my usual morning feeding of the animals- giving Licorice our baby goat ,  his bottle - feeding the chickens and collecting eggs. I discovered that our dear sweet Edna has decided she wants chicks. She has turned quite broody on us and is determined to sit on her little nest of hay and not move. It will be wonderful to think of the prospect of chicks soon as I am itching to add more animals to our little farm. It amazes me how everything - everything - in nature knows instinctively its own seasons and its own rhythms. They move seamlessly into one stage after another- throwing themselves fully into each. The best lesson it seems is their ability to live in the moment rather than cast their view longingly back towards the past. So today here in Mystic Hills , Edna will sit on her nest - happy and expectant. It is her time and it is her season. It is a wonderful thing - this life.

Dumbfounded

Its a beautiful still sunny spring morning as I write this. The Tui are singing joyfully in the garden and I can almost hear the grass growing. It is a day to be alive! We spent the weekend in the Kaimanawa mountains and the peace of the hills has lifted me above the often depressing drag of daily life.
And that is what is so profound.

I don't have a daily life that is a drag. I enjoy my job, love it with a passion actually. I love my life, my location, my friends, my partner, but, often I am fooled into believing that other things on the pheriphery of life should take center stage. Yes, I am a normal human being with many of life's normal hassles and difficulties. I have people who are displeased with me, I have bills to pay and vehicles and appliances that fail me at vital moments. I have aches and pains and disfigurements from a full life lived close to the edge. And many are the small irritations of my days....if I choose to dwell on these things.

I have a labyrinth in my garden, an ancient form of prayer and meditation, and walking slowly around it on this glorious morning I pondered the way many of us (if not all of us) live life as little children in adult bodies. Grown, yet still responding to our world from within the fears and imaginations of children, peering out from our special safe places, waiting for...someone to rescue us?, or permission to be?. Living life in such a way is what makes it a drag. It forces us to pretend we are grown up and independent when in reality we are desperatley dependent on others and our circumstances to feel safe and happy. But this is not true reality! True reality is this..the world is round. What, I hear you say is he talking about? I'm talking about the difference between a flat earth and a round one. On a flat earth it is possible to go too far toward the edge and fall off-there are distinct boundaries where you cannot go. On a  round earth on the other hand it is entirely possible to go in any direction for as long as you want and still be on the earth. And that is true reality. You and I are able to choose how we live, how we respond to our circumstances and what pleasures or ambitions we will pursue and we need never fear falling off the world. It is simply impossible while experiencing human life to cease to be human. Unpleasant sometimes, but we get to learn and choose even in those circumstances.

What I'm trying to say in all this is that I could choose to live each day focusing on the things that make life a drag. Or I can choose how I will feel and focus on the many joys and pleasures of this beautiful world and have a great day.

I blog because I like to write and if I wanted to I could find many excuses and valid reasons why I shouldn't, but I've chosen to enjoy life, and so I blog.

I guess I'm dumbfounded as to why I took so long to realise that the child in me is still allowed to live 'in the moment' and enjoy playing where-ever I am.

What lies inside each of us.

 

It often amazes me how little I truly know about myself..I have found over the last few years that I am constantly pushed and challenged beyond what I  thought I could do. Choices I never would have considered - I now find I cannot dream of doing without. In each step I take , I amaze myself. It is delightful to surprise oneself. One of the best examples of finding what lies dormant in each of us - is our beautiful cat Hope. Hope is a Ragdoll . One of these rather special breed of cats noted for their docile and placid nature. She is very much created to be your lounge cat. The kind you find all fluffed up in cat shows and on cat postcards. She is what Greg has termed the "blonde princess". She carries herself with a regal sense of who is she and is never flustered by what is around her. There is no hurrying Hope to do anything. She is an indoor cat, who detests getting her paws wet ,let alone dirty. You can then imagine the sheer horror I felt when having moved my precious fur family to the country - I was informed that now they could safely roam the great outdoors, hunt for rabbit and come and go as they please. I thought Greg was highly optimistic - let alone deluded. I could not imagine my Princess even making overtures toward the cat door. Still ,I smiled the polite smile of one in love when your sweetheart is attempting to propel your precious cat through a cat door.Hope was herself uncertain if this was a good idea. Episodes of "kitty swearing" - spayed out paws and frantic mid air scratching were displayed. Both man and cat persevered in holding their ground. Finally Hope's ventures into the outdoors became longer and gradually more frequent. She now wakes us up at the first sign of dawn to be let out the cat door. I have seen her slinking across the lawn in pursuit of some bird she stands no chance of catching. She returns home with muddy paws and smelling of hard time done in the wool shed by our home. What ever has become of my "show cat" kitty? In her place a creature basking in the pure pleasure of a new world - the joy of exploration and the willingness to find within herself a new way of living and embrace that. I marvel at the lesson that teaches me when I find myself in new waters- looking longingly back to the past. Why not instead embrace the possibility of the unknown - the new - the uncertain. What do I have to lose in the real scope of things- perhaps pride - perhaps the possibility of looking stupid. I have to admit I have done "looking stupid " many times in life - so that will not be a new skill for me. Rather I  think in the process of stepping out into the unknown I may find I meet someone quite new- a part of myself I have yet to discover. Maybe, just maybe - I will surprise myself.

The wonderful humble chicken!

 

I now have a new appreciation for the wonderful humble chicken. I have never been a meat eater and my experience of eggs have always been that of neat 12 packs on a supermarket shelf. I must admit I have never given it alot of thought. Growing up and living in a city all my life , one never contemplates the idea of keeping chickens. Still I have always loved the idea. I use to indulge my fantasies by buying books on country living, keeping chickens and other such wonderful heart warming ideals. I do know that for some women - this would be a nightmare. Cleaning out chicken coops, dealing with chicken poop etc. But I have come to understand that I have been wired differently - some genetic throwback to another time that survived the upbringing in a fast paced city.I have always wanted to live a life that was simple , close to the earth and grounded. One does tend to give up the dream - on days trapped behind a computer looking out at a world of tall buildings, traffic jams and skyscrapers. I never openly shared this dream for to do so - would invite ridicule. It was incomprehensible to the world I had come from - the people I worked with - how anyone would want a life that was "pushed back into the dark ages ". The very notion that I wanted to grow my own food ,make my own soap, keep chickens, spin and weave my own wool or bake homemade bread was ridiculous. It was considered a sheer waste of time. In contrast- trolling the newspapers for real estate investments or checking the stock market or making numerous circuits around the local mall was not. Yes - I was wired differently.

It was wonderful to find a soul mate who not only shared my dreams but relished in them too. We work side by side as we plant a vegetable garden and plan a life that is off the beaten track but  true to ourselves. Our little collection of 5 hens and 1 rooster bless us daily with fresh eggs. Little brown ones - warm from a bed of hay and a little blue one from Chookie . Chookie has always been a little bit of a rebel- scooting out of the hen house at top speed and refusing to go back in. They share our world here...wandering about the farm. talking to us, making uncoordinated sprints  across the field when they think its dinner time. It is hard to take life seriously with chickens about- it just cant be done. In many ways its cheap therapy.

I now feel for thousands of chickens trapped in cages and forced to lay eggs for supermarket shelves. I see more than ever the need to try to buy free range eggs. For chickens are not just egg producers- they are very much individuals with a personality and life force within them. Their size and humility does not take anything from what wonderful little additions they are to our lives. 

Sitting on our front porch watching our chickens talk to each us and  to each other, hurry about their way with a funny sense of urgency,or  just "be".  ASlice of heaven.

The world  can keep its malls. I have time to waste.

Books....Wonderful Books!!

Books make up a huge part of our life here and both of us are delighted at the prospect of having a home filled with old musty books. Well thumbed , yellowed pages of the passion and soul mummerings of another's existance. Our collection to date is quite a blend . Novels, classics , poetry , New Zealand life and adventure , Craft and Cooking, Self Sufficency and Country Living, Psychology and Sociology , Religion and Philosophy. There is nothing more wonderful or soothing than an evening by the fire with a new book that excites , transports and inspires. For me a trip to the library to return home with an armful of books is akin to what most women find in the "mall experience". I am inspired by books showing the creations of others..be it quilts with vintage fabrics, rugs hooked from old clothes, primitive dolls or wild crocheted tea cosies. There is something quite wonderful about the ability to share ideas and inspiration. It is in one way what we hope this blog will do- share our world , our thoughts with anyone who stumbles upon it to read. And we welcome your feedback and contact - share with us what you have read or found that we might find interesting too. We have included a list of books we are reading and have read. Hopefully from it you can see  what inspires and challenges us- to become better people...deeper souls and more authentic to ourselves. We are so happy to have you join us on this mystical path.

Meet Edna

The animals we share the farm with are such a big part of our lives.I cannot imagine life here devoid of them. They are family and friends. We wake to the birds - the tui's and the bellbirds singing. And of course my favourite the Warbler. It has a lovely sing song chip that is almost a taunt to get out of bed and face the day! 

We thought it was time to meet the rest of the clan that share our home here in Mystic Hills. Each is special . This time we are delighted for you to meet Edna. 

Edna is one of our delightful laying hens. She is not the ordinary chicken with her buffont 1960's retro hairdo  piled  high on her head and feathery cuffs. She is a wonderfully gentle little chicken who is happy to cluck her way around the farm - some days independent of the brood - very much the liberated female - other days closely following Elvis and the Girls.Soft speckled gray Edna starts her day -strolling about our yard.Doing close inspection to make sure all is right. She is in many ways like everyone's favourite Aunt -lovely  but definately dotty! Edna would love to hear from you - so feel free to send her mail and say a Cluck!Cluck! to her!

Spring Green

Aah... 'tis that time of year. Spring has touched down. Tentatively, but it is here. The grass on the farm has turned that vibrant green that imparts a new energy into everything and everyone that gazes upon it. The ewes are set out on the hills for lambing(background) and the Bulls have been opened up onto a fast round to keep control of the rapidly growing grass. All are blooming, animals and plants. There is an air of expectation. The work of the new season is about to burst upon us. Optimism reigns supreme, at least while the sun shines! Mind you it snowed on the hill tops last Thursday and we are in the grip of a series of late frosts that threaten the newly planted grass in the deer paddocks and vegetables in our garden. But, spring it is and here is a picture of a few of the bulls after a hard winter now surging ahead into a period of rapid growth on lush pasture.