'Wild'

It's been a busy week, with both Pete and Chris coming to stay with their families. We've had a great time together: the first time they've seen us in our new home. We've also had Ruth & Tim's cat,Milo, staying with us for nearly a month, while they were on holiday in the US and Canada. What with the hens as well, there has been quite a lot of 'estate management' to do.

Hattie, Hennie and Hilda are now well settled and most of the time roam free in the garden, which they enjoy. All three are laying - not consistently, but most days we get at least two decent sized eggs from them. There are still the occasional mishaps, eggs which are small, with very thin or poorly-formed shells, landing in the bottom of the henhouse rather than laid in the nesting box. But these are becoming less frequent. We are learning all the time, and it's fascinating being part of nature in this way, living with the rhythms of the wild.

Last weekend, Les and I watched the DVD of 'Wild', starring Reese Witherspoon as Cheryl Strayed, from the original memoir of the same name, subtitled 'From Lost to Found'. It was totally absorbing. It tells the story of a woman who launches, completely unprepared, into a 1100-mile hike across the Pacific Crest Trail following the early death of her beloved mother and the failure of her marriage. In her lostness (the name 'Strayed' is significant) she becomes trapped in a cycle of self-destructive behaviour then, realising her plight, decides on this journey in order to find redemption. ('Am I being redeemed or have I been redeemed?' she asks herself towards the end of the journey.)  Along the way, there are several encounters with both nature and other humans which test her endurance to the limit as well as many joy-giving and revelatory experiences, such as the experienced hiker who helps her shed several pounds from her over-large rucksack (symbolic, of course, of elements of her past she is also shedding). At the end, after 94 days, she comes to the Bridge of the Gods, which she is about to cross into Washington, and, you feel, into a new life - more confident about who she is and who she is becoming. In some ways, it reminds me of The Way, which is another film of self-discovery on a challenging journey.

I don't know whether I would ever have the courage or the resources within or without to undertake such a journey, but I do find the wild very appealing and like that sense of risk-taking and adventure. Maybe I prefer to adventure vicariously! As a metaphor for life, however - especially life in the Spirit - it is thrilling. May I suggest you have a read of this piece by Martin Cavender, who offers a 'wild thank you' for his life, which he knows is coming to an end. (In fact, he died only 2 weeks or so after writing this.)

 http://www.resource-arm.net/pdf/NMC%20Our%20strength%20and%20our%20song.pdf

This is a piece which says much of what I would want to say about living the Christian life, in particular about heaven on earth and about 'a long obedience in the same direction' (after Nietszche).

As a matter of fact, two of the books he mentions have inspired me over the past two months: The Shepherd's Life: A Tale of the Lake District by James Rebanks and Following Jesus - the Plural of Disciple is Church by Alison Morgan. Catch them if you can!

Chickens!

We have just got in  from a rather exhausting evening, chasing chickens around the garden to get them back into their enclosure! We thought they'd return of their own accord when it got dusk, but they seem to have enjoyed their freedom too much! In the end, it was the old corn trick: shake a bag of corn, the chooks follow it, throw a handful into the run and bingo!

So here they are. Meet, from top to bottom: Hattie, Hilda and Hen-rietta (Henny). They are all hybrids, and named after a local place: Blencathra Black, Skiddaw Speckledy and Bewcastle Blue.

We had our first egg this morning, but we don't know which of these laid it. It was small, soft and squidgy which is normal for the first eggs. Not edible, but at least we're under way now with egg production. We're told that each hen could lay around 250 eggs per year, once they get going. So if you live near us or come to visit, you could be getting some fresh eggs every so often.

This is a steep learning curve. We've already had to extend the run as we could see the three hens were a bit too crowded. We have to be up early every morning to let them out of their house; and they have to be safely shut up at night when they go to roost. Then there is the feeding and drinking aspect which needs some care, plus routine maintenance of their environment. They all seem to be healthy, but any problems and we'll be going back to the various reference books we've been given!

This is something I've wanted to do for some years, though I didn't realise how challenging it would be. I think it's about working with the rhythm of nature which I quite enjoy. It also gives me a common interest with local people, and makes me a 'disciple' - a learner, being so aware of my own ignorance. All in all a very positive experience.