One Minute

 There are 1440 minutes in every day.  If I subtract those hours when I am asleep, that leaves me with nine-hundred and sixty minutes worth of life on the farm that could potentially become a blog post.  When I look at life this way, I realize that I might never run out of material to share with you!  Today I thought we could just examine one single minute of the day.  

Taking a single moment to focus on all that is happening in the world around you is a great way to become more aware of one's surroundings.  Naturally, it is a little easier when you have a farm teeming with life, right?  Well, here's your single minute of farm life....

I awoke and headed out to the barn earlier than usual.  Hubbs had an early medical appointment, so I awoke way before the sun began to cast a glow on the horizon.  I did a few things around the house - laundry, some dishes, bed-making, etc., then threw on my warmest clothes (it was quite frigid out!) and headed out the door.  My minute begins after I arrive at the barn and have turned the equines out to graze.

Inside the barn, the kitties are toasty warm beneath their heat lamps.

Outside the barn, a light dusting of snow glistens on the dry lot.

As I walk through the dry lot with chow dishes in hand, I cast my eyes to the sky in front of me where pink and blue clouds, like outstretched hands, reach to cradle the still, almost-full moon

With my good camera around my neck,  I set down the chow bowls and get a close-up shot.  Although blue, the sky shows up black behind the luminous moon in the shot that I get - pretty amazing considering the fact that the moon is about 250,000 miles away!

Behind me, the sun projects a golden glow just above the horizon.

To the right of me, above the old log cabin, the clouds reflect the fiery sunrise.

I feed the pig...

and hear Faith begin to bleat just outside the pig house.  

 She's complaining that she, too, would like a bowl of chow.  We've had to buy a bag of sheep food, because she steals Ginger's pig food if she isn't given her own bowl.  She has a solid protein/mineral feed block in her house that is always available to her, but lately she thinks that she should have whatever Ginger has.  In order to keep her from stealing Ginger's food (which has copper in it - a mineral that sheep don't need and is toxic to them) we give her her own bowl of sheep food.  Her complaining stops as she gets down to the business of eating.

Meanwhile, the horses and donkeys are quietly grazing...

and the dogs are not-so-quietly playing in the front pasture.

All of this happening in the span of one minute.  The amazing thing is... this is only one brief minute on one pin-point area of this big world of ours.  So much happens in every single minute... it's mind blowing,

and also a great reminder of just how tiny we are.  Tiny, yes... but not insignificant.

The minute has passed as we continue on with chores.   The runner ducks rush out to greet the rising sun...

while Forrest inspects the drainage pipe outside the pig yard.  It's a favorite hiding place for kitties,

 

so, he inspects it every time he passes by.

I took a moment to get a close look at the remaining snow on the ground...

as the school bus passes by.

Ollie has made his way into the pig yard... his very own private grazing pasture.

Good morning, world... and Hello Winter!