Keeping It Simple For Our Health's Sake

"Information is like compost; it does no good unless you spread it around." ~ Eliot Coleman

Let me begin by stating openly and honestly that I do not consider myself an expert at anything. I am and forever will be a work in progress. However, in the past decade or so, I have learned a few life lessons. Keep it simple—three little words filled with so much wisdom! Whether it is our relationships, our finances, our homes, or our health, this phrase packs such a practical punch.

 I've just finished watching an episode of a famous syndicated television doctor's show; I'm sure many of you have seen it, too. The day's discussion was on the pork industry and how the meat we consume could be adversely affecting our health. The show discussed how the pigs were raised, the way they are housed, and the food AND drugs they are given to support health and combat stress. They had a gentleman on the show that began his report with the phrase, keep it simple. One must look at the problem for what it is: an uncomplicated and unhealthy push to meet consumer demands and buy a lot and cheaply. If the average person (like me) took the time to inform themselves about how our food is being "produced," I am certain we would all look for alternative food suppliers. I believe the average person, with an average conscience, would realize and internally scream, THIS ISN'T RIGHT!

Looking out my window at our snowy barnyard, I see nothing but simple peacefulness. Our animals are not stressed, crowded, or confined to 3'x3'spaces. Our animals do not have to fight for space, food, or stimuli. Our animals are simply at peace. We don't have to pump our pasture pigs full of antibiotics to keep them healthy or feed them synthetic feed to make them grow. They walk about as they please in a vast space for three pigs (we are blessed with space). However, this spring, our herd will go from three to possibly thirty, and they will still have more than enough room to be happy. As I speak, Miss Edna is out for her daily amble about the pasture. She is the only girl brave enough to leave the barn in this cold, snowy weather.

My point is we keep it simple. We feed our heritage breed pasture pigs an all-natural diet. We keep their home clean. We keep their bodies clean, and their minds are entertained with normal, natural pig behaviors. They grow by leaps and bounds at their own rate. There is no stress or push in our barnyard. We care for our animals, take our stewardship seriously, work with integrity, and appreciate what our animals provide for us. In the end, our naturally raised pork will provide healthful, needed protein and sustenance for possibly 60 families. This is food that I will feel good about putting on my table and my neighbor's table.

We keep it simple. This is not a plug to buy our pork. I ask that you educate yourself and make informed decisions about what you put in your body and where it comes from. What you will discover about "Agri-Business" will concern you, frighten you, and perhaps even sicken you. But don't be afraid to be informed. In my simple opinion, as I look out over our snowy barnyard, simple is good.

Tina

The World Would Be A Better Place If We All Had Baby Goats To Snuggle

As we move swiftly into April, I have a new sense of purpose and motivation. I adore spring and its boundless possibilities. With spring comes babies, and with babies come endless chores, exhaustion, concern, and absolute, unbridled joy! There just isn’t anything more joyful and fun-loving than a baby goat. I am a firm believer in goat therapy. Are you feeling grumpy? Pet a goat. Are you blue, forlorn, just off? Pet a goat. Did you have a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day? By all means, pet a goat!

I worked on taxes today. It is one of the few drawbacks of the spring season, albeit a considerable drawback. I hate numbers. I hate everything about numbers. I hate how they have to match up and balance. I hate how there is only one way to get the correct answer. I mostly hate not knowing how to get to that correct answer, but I digress. I was frustrated. I was angry. I was overwhelmed. However, I was mainly mean and crying. I cried while on the phone with the friendly, helpful woman from the state tax office. I cried, and I mean UGLY cried, over being unable to find needed invoices. My patient, number-loving math genius, the logical husband, asked me why I was crying. I told him in a high-pitched, shaky, ugly cry that it was just what I did. As a side note, he knows this. We’ve been married for sixteen years. This is not new behavior for tax season. I consider working on tax day a very bad day.

My daughter came home from school. I can tell what kind of day she has had by the look on her face when she gets off the bus. Today, not so good. As I listened to events of fourth grade and all its drama, I kept thinking, how do I put a positive spin on this? What is the lesson here? What can I help her gain from the unfairness of the life of a fourth grader? The truth is, I had nothing to offer. Some days just aren’t so good. The reality is that we will feel frustrated, angry, let down, and disappointed. It is simply how life goes. So, I listened. I nodded, acknowledged and validated her feelings, and as she looked expectantly at me, waiting for my response, I said, “Let’s go pet some goats.” She looked a bit baffled and declined my invitation. She just wanted to go to the house, do homework, call her friend who was involved with the mix-up of the day, and pretty much continue to prolong the course of the day. I told her I had had a bad day, too. I told her all about my frustrated, overwhelmed, ugly cry kind of day. She listened, nodded, and asked for clarification. I again said, “Come on, let’s go pet some goats. We could both use some baby goat time.” She grudgingly agreed.

We went to the barn, said hi to all the adult goats, and made a beeline for the baby’s stall. Once inside, we sat down, cuddled, talked baby talk, and soon, very soon, we laughed. We continued to laugh for a half hour or so. And you know what, dear reader, our perspective changed by the end of that half hour. The world didn’t feel so heavy and bleak. The day didn’t seem quite so horrible. Taxes, lacking paperwork, and poor planning and organization didn’t seem like such a big deal. Feeling misunderstood and wrongly accused no longer felt like the end of the world. Once again, that feeling of potential, that spark of positivity, the sense of renewal was suddenly back. Perhaps it wasn’t quite as bright, but it was back.

As we walked back to the house to face the tasks of weekday evenings. Jordan said, “Good plan, mommy.” Perhaps, just perhaps, the world would be a more positive place if we all had baby goats to pet.

I hope you are enjoying revisiting the past with me. On this lovely fall day, stay safe, be smart, pet a baby goat if needed, and keep washing your hands.

My Sweet Baboo

This darling is my Sweet Baboo, or formally Peanut Butter Cup. She is the goat that started it all. We bought her when she was already freshened (making milk) in 2016. Her well-mannered behavior on the milk stand, sound production, and pleasant personality made us goat fans immediately. She was bred again in the fall of 2016. Once again, she proved what fantastic creatures goats are when she delivered a set of twin girls in the early spring of 2017. Boo is the reason we have to put snaps on all the gates. She discovered how to work the latches with her lips and taught the other goats the trick. She enjoys being the leader of the pack as well as animal crackers.