Spring is Here

March is a month that I had been anticipating with great joy. My lambs were due on Mar 25. Before that happened though, the shearer would come Mar 4 and I would be able to see the shape that all the sheep were in. I was eager to see if the yearlings had maintained enough weight and if the ewes looked healthy for lambing.

The shearer we use is from Wales and he is fast and expert. He charges more than the local guy, but his speed and experience are worth it and stress the sheep less. I gathered the fleeces as quickly as he sheared them and I have since been playing with natural, abundant wool.

When he started and fleece was flying off, it was obvious who was in lamb, who needed more grain and who looked good. Getting rid of a year’s worth of wool showed the truth. For some the truth was a glorious revelation of health, for others it was apparent that quick action was critical.

Openness: this is what shearing is, it reveals how things are really doing.I pondered how all of us are doing. Are we open spiritually? Do we reveal how we really are, or do we cover up our lives with thick fleeces that obscure the truth that is hidden beneath? Covering up leaves us at risk; our needs physically (as with the sheep) may not be adequately met, or even more so, our emotional and spiritual needs can go unmet. Spring is a time known for cleaning and new starts. It is a good time for us to do a personal shearing and see how you really are under the coverings we let accumulate.

The above pictures are of two of my ewes that were fed the same stuff, but obviously had very different needs.

The one on the right was immediately given special attention and her individual needs have been addressed.

Just like all things with God, much is out of our control. My first lambs were born 4 days early. Beautiful twins! One boy and one girl. How happy I was to see start to see the miracle of new births. The last few weeks have been a time of rejoicing in the miracle of life that God has structured. I cry and pray with amazement each day I see new little lambs.I thought that my 14 bred ewes would spread out lambing over a month, but, 11 of my 14 had all their babies in 10 days. By the end of March I had 18 lambs and now I start to watch for growth and health.

A really  fun circumstance that I had not expected was that the ewes would lamb in the early hours of the morning and when one of us would show up to feed at about 11am there would be more sets of twins or bouncing singles that would be up and running around. One morning I showed up and there were 5 more lambs. Each day it was watching miracles take place.

Spring Miracles!