This One is About the Birds—-Tuesday, April 23, 2019

On my walk, last evening three cranes settled down.  They seem to have decided to stay here instead of migrating.

Works for me!

The crows are working the farm over for something to eat

They are hard to photograph as they scatter quicklyy

Yesterday was lovely and warm so I put out two hummingbird feeders

Within twenty minutes I had a little Blackchin male followed quickly by his mate. (The photo is terrible; they were very shy and I couldn’t get a good shot)

As the evening started to fall down upon the earth the little birds took to their nighttime perch.  For some reason, they have roosted here all fall, winter and they are still roosting in the large rose bush.

As the night grows darker they flutter way deep inside.

 

This morning on the way to the headgate

a pheasant took off in front of us

And joyfully, joyfully…the last of the birds has arrived!  The Barn Swallows!

We are on our way to much warmer weather!

YAY!

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

Listen to the Moon —- Monday, April 22, 2019

April’s full moon is the Pink Moon

And for a spell, it did look pink.

Friday evening the moon sang a song of light to the trees

It quickly rose as if a gust of wind was pushing it

Gradually it was free from the last branch flying high into the sky

But the most amazing thing about the moonlight, as it rose higher and higher, then through the living room window the shafts of moonlight sang a song; to which my heart cried out in wonder.

From my world to your heart,

Linda

 

Easter Sunday, April 21, 2019

On this day the Ressurection of a man’s very special life occurred

With considerable Magic, only Heavenly Father can produce— a hideous death by crucifixion was overcome

That horrendous ‘tween time between Good Friday and Easter Morning was reduced to nothing but a blink of an eye

From that moment forth we can truly renew hope and challenge ourselves to achieve victory

Over Evil.

May your day be blessed in so many ways!

With Love,

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

 

Dare to Live a Dream —- Thursday, April 18, 2019

We have been cleaning up around the farm.  Moving things here and there, hauling stuff to the dump, sorting things into piles for Rec-Metals, and raking and cleaning around the buildings

Even though the huge heavy work,

of the main production part of the farm is no longer ours, the hillsides, the flat tops of the hills, the pastures (six of them) and the upkeep of the farm itself is still ours.

PLUS…the shrinking of my yard

Sometimes the works seem endless (since some of this had to be put off until we had time)

But yesterday after lunch we rented a stump grinder and began

It too three steady hours

To reduce it to this!

Now I get to level and seed it to grass! YaY!

So exciting…a clean, new slate to give life to a new dream!

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

My Belief in This Wonderful World — Wednesday, April 17, 2019

As a young child, maybe around the age of 5, or 6, or 7, I don’t remember for sure now. I started having nightmares.

(My brother, Dan, my great-Uncle Henry… 1914-1980… Love Grandma’s youngest brother, and myself on Easter Morning.)

The nightmares were awful things, scary, frightening full of terror…more than monsters under the bed or in the closet, or coming up the basement stairs.

I couldn’t go outside at night for fear of the nighttime…it was a horrible time of dark magic for me.

Then Momma hit upon the idea of helping me reclaim the real magic of the world. She would put me to bed with stories of fairies and angels.

She talked about fairies who lived right there in the cherry orchard by our house, fluttering in fun little dances under flowers in her flower beds.

She told about Angels who lived in the sky, reaching out helping hands to grab our prayers as they flew by, then taking them to Heavenly Father so he could hear our prayers also, she described how the Angels made sure the stars were polished and sparkling each night and that the Angels would visit with the Man in the Moon.

Her stories were marvelous, vivid and just plain fun.

(My brother and I)

It took a little while….magic always does….but she gave back to me the safety and enchantment of our marvelous planet, the vastness of the heavens and the colors of the rainbow.

Of which I am eternally grateful!

P.S.  I went out and checked all the Apricot blooms again and it looks like the second flush of blooms is going to make into apricots!  WOW!  What a surprise!

From my world to your heart,

Linda

 

In the Bright Sunlight of a Beautiful April Day — Tuesday, April 16, 2019

The heartbeat of a farm is

Water

You can ready the ground, plant the seeds, fertilize, manage the weeds

But without water, nothing will happen

Although, we do get rain, in our high mountain desert region the amount of rain we get only sinks in about the width of a shadow

So yesterday in the gentle morning sunlight

The siphon tubes were gathered across each and every ditch, laid along the side with the orange dams and the mental dams; water was started into the pastures at the Upper End, the old Apricot Tree, and the horses’ pastures.

The water gurgling and glittering making tiny splashing noises as it rushed in a small wind to give life to seeds and a drink to thirsty little plants.

Thankfully, but late evening my computer was back in working shape.

Yesterday turned out to be a very good day!

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

 

Sorry Computer Troubles….Hope to Be Back Tomorrow—-Monday, April 15, 2019

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

Look to the Earth, Look to the Sky —-Sunday, April 14, 2019

(Hubbard, Papa (Henry Ashe), Henry Emmett —youngest son, and Willard top row,

seat William Hobson Thomas, Momma’s Dad and Momma, Ruth, Laverne.)

My Momma was the only grandchild/Niece of a large warm wonderful family on her Mother’s side.

(1929-2000)

She grew up knowing her Wootton grandfather, whom she called Papa, just as everyone else did.

(Her maternal Grandmother, Grace Elizabeth Hubbard Wootton 1879-1918)  died from an ear infection when the youngest of the nine children was just two years old)

(Momma on her way to school one morning)

This large wonderful, warm, funny, family always got together whenever they possibly could.

Momma would tell me that Papa (Henry Ashe Wootton 1871-1940) was a most interesting man.  She loved listening to the stories he told about his life and the lives of her Mother and all her Mother’s siblings, and his love of his life, Grace.  (Papa never remarried.)

Henry Ashe Wootton

One thing that always stuck her mind was Papa would say: “Look at the sky, marvel at its wonders, and also look at the ground, for you can find spectacular things there also”.

Momma said Papa’s desk had fun things he had found while out walking…an interesting rock, a bird’s feather, a shiny bit of this and that.

I must be a wee bit like Papa for I look always to the sky

And I watch closely on the ground

Yesterday afternoon, while taking some stuff to one of the outbuildings

My heart, mind, and eyes

Were dazzled by a tiny wee heart just waiting to be found.

From my world to your heart,

Linda

 

A Great Storm Blew In—-Thursday, April 11, 2019

Yesterday and Today are miserable days to be outside

Although, Terry and I had some work that HAD to be done…wind, rain, sleet or snow, no matter

The bitter wind blew off all the Apricot blossoms

Making the ground white

Even landing on a very disgruntled cat

Today is pretty much the same

I went out to look for rainbows, but the clouds were not the right kind.

Photo copied from Face Book

Still, we had nothing compared to the eastern slope!

Nothing.

They are calling it a Bomb Cyclone

https://gazette.com/news/storm-packs-roads-north-of-colorado-springs-with-ice-and/article_e0cd8780-5c52-11e9-9e2b-73ada87b16f5.html

So in loving memory of the Apricot blooms,

I will close for now,

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

 

Some Things Stay the Same —- Wednesday, April 10, 2019

The new farmer and his brother-in-law came and started working up the land.  There are four families farming counting the main brother who is the head of the clan.  They all grew up as farmers and have taken over their Dad’s land and started renting other properties—-it takes approximately 1,000 acres per family to make a living farming nowadays.

Since we have kept all the pastures, hills, meadows, and flatlands, that makes us responsible for the water on the place.  (Not the irrigation of the big farmed fields but getting the water to the place, onto all the fields and into the pastures.)

The cows damaged the gated pipe over the winter so yesterday, Terry and I went out and removed the two damaged sticks

Replacing them with new gated pipe

Done!

After which we put together a load of trash to go to the dump….we are cleaning up all sorts of places and spots and areas we have put off for years.

Today Terry will make all the ditches on the place…that will help out the farmer and get the water to the places where we are farming.

So even though the major part of the farm is rented out…farming and upkeep for Terry and I has just changed—and Terry stated last night at supper he really likes this new type of farming for him.

And THAT My Friends (as you all have said) Is A Very Good Thing!

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda