All Creatures, Great and Small

This weekend brought with it a little cold snap here on the farm.  With temperatures dipping down to 18 degrees Friday night, we had to cover the emerging plants in our garden.  The seedlings in the greenhouse were protected from the cold by a couple of heat lamps.  Despite the feel of the air, though, Spring is quite evident.  The trees are budding.  The forsythia has bloomed.  The daffodils' faces have emerged...looking skyward in search of warmth.
 
Saturday afternoon, while on my way to the barn, I spotted a blue heron circling in the sky above the pond.  He visits regularly, but I have never been able to capture him on film.  I backed the gator up to the house and ran inside to grab the good camera with the telephoto lens.  By the time I reached the pond, however he was gone...elusive bird.  Some day I will catch that fellow!

I poked around the edge of the pond....looking for anything of interest....especially signs of spring.  Happily I found a jack in the pulpit in the little spring that feeds the pond.
These are a sure sign that warm weather is just around the corner.  While standing there marveling at this sight I heard a tiny cry of "help!" from behind me.  I turned around to see this sight....tiny orange legs trying desperately to flag me down.
It seems that poor Mr. Turtle had gotten himself into quite a predicament!  Knowing that he would surely die without some assistance, I turned him back onto his belly.  Fear made him quickly pull all appendages into the safety of his shell.
After a moment his little head emerged from his shell...
and I could have sworn I saw a tiny smile cross his lips.  Yes, turtles have lips!  As I turned and headed back up to the barn I heard a faint "thanks!" from the water's edge.  I smiled and kept walking.  Another precious heart would continue to beat on the farm.  Knowing that was all the thanks I needed.  Life is so fragile....so precious.  It is my hope that each and every soul...no matter how small... feels safety in the shelter of Bee Haven Acres.

PS:  We had a "meet and greet" with Oakley yesterday.  Oakley is a lab mix(perhaps mixed with boxer) rescue dog that we saved from being killed in a shelter down south two weeks ago.  He finally made it to PA this weekend.  It has been a long two weeks for him....and he is settling in to his foster home.  We hope to adopt him ASAP...but he must prove himself farmworthy (ie: no risk of killing chicken, etc.)

Although he needs a little work on basic commands and manners, he is a real sweetheart.  He is eager to please, very loving....very, very needy.  He is a bit on the skinny side.  His teeth are nice and clean which leads us to believe he is fairly young.  I am guessing he is somewhere between a year and two years old....but only a feeling.  He focuses in on whoever he is with...so he should be very easy to train.
He is friendly to cats, dogs and horses....and of course us!
Hubbs and I have a really good feeling about this fellow and are quite eager to bring him home and make him part of our family.  But, all in due time.  He needs time to socialize and prove himself.  My heart says we did the right thing.....Oakley is a winner! (so far)

Comments

Sandy said…
I love reading about your animals! What a cute photo and story of your little turtle and Oakley is definitely a WINNER and what a beauty!

Hugs,
Teacup Lane (Sandy)
Anke said…
Your pictures are so pretty, as always... I wish I had planted some daffodils already. In the fall I seem to forget only to be reminded again in the spring. It is definitely on my to do list for this year! Oakley seems like such a sweet and gentle dog, I do hope he will be able to come home with you guys soon. He couldn't find a better home anywhere!
Pam said…
*waving* Hi to hubby and pup...so cute! I love turtles and those flowers..so pretty!

HELLO SPRING!...he he!

xoxo
Kelly said…
It does feel good to help the ones who need it most whether it is a small creature or mankind. I think Oakley falls into the latter category. He will have a wonderful family and many "friends" to be with.
Unknown said…
Oh, I do hope everything works out with Oakley too. He's a handsome fellow!

We have an elusive Heron at our pond too. I'm not giving up on capturing his image, but I'm not holding my breath either!

Mr Turtle looked quite happy!

~Andrea~
Farm Girl said…
Love your picture of the Jack-in-the-pulpit. Oh and the poor turtle. Growing up and still today one of my favorite authors was Gene Stratton Porter, looking at the pictures you took today remind me of the pages of her books. Nice dog too. I can't wait to see a picture of the blue heron.
Unknown said…
He is so cute, don't you just want him now?
Beautiful words about the Turtle and the preciousness of life - thank you, a wonderful way to start my work week. Along with some other motorists who stopped for the same reason, I saved a Snapping Turtle from death in the road a couple of years ago, and felt his "thank you" in my head as he waddled toward the stream he'd been trying to get to. It's a good thing to protect the small lives around us - as Chief Joseph said, we would die of loneliness if we were on this lovely planet all alone.

Blessings to you on this beautiful day -

Christina / SVG
Junebug said…
So glad to see Mr Turtle back in his upright position. We don't have turtles around here. As for Oakley, I've got my figures cross he is not a chicken chaser. He is a precious looking pooch.

Enjoy this day!!!
What a lucky turtle, and a lucky dog! :) I can't wait to have enough space to have a canine friend!

Daffodils are my favorite flower - they tell me spring is coming and I can stop being a grumpybutt!
Unknown said…
Love the turtle with a happy ending. Cannot wait to see more about Oakley and I hope he can make it work with you guys. He sure would have a great life.
countrynmore said…
I hope that everything works out for Oakley. I like spring. Love to see the new flowers of the season. My son's dry garden is sure blooming.