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lichen and mosses.   i saw them some when i came last year,  but didn't know how to SEE them,  this time around,  i know more,  know what i am looking for.  Just 3 days of RAIN and they have begun their circle of Being,  having waited.

Jenny came today and we worked all day.  Unloading what had been loaded.  Beginning to do what needs to be done for Next Summer.  Beginning to work the Goat yards so they can be  easy loading.  In case.  

Catching and loading the bucks was harrowing.  They have large yards.  Like Large.  Which we want them to have.  But this makes emergencies close to impossible.  In the effort to catch them for this move,  many times,  both Alyssia and Jenny went down.  Falling.  Moving them,  Falling.  Either of them could have been hurt.    So now we know.  We figure it out.  How to make it better.  Better for Them,  better for us.  We begin.  All the while,  as we worked,  we talked about how to make this less vulnerable.  Things we can Do.  A lot of it all is still LUCK,  but there are things we can do.

Talkie browsed with her herd.  Her color was deep with the rain but she fluffed herself frequently and churred and wandered.

none of the Goats are less from their experience.  Sunny Ray has a little limp.  I kept counting them.  12.  counting 12.  yes.  12.  We had left no one behind.  12 doe Goats.  4 buck.  Yes.  We are all here.  All here and ready to find ways to Just Go.  OK.

 

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26 responses to “what i’ve been waiting for, waiting to Learn”

  1. Greta wells Avatar
    Greta wells

    “…no one left behind… ” good, Grace.

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  2. carol Avatar
    carol

    The Universe feels a bit less unraveled knowing that you and animals are back in your Place. I give thanks..

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  3. Joanne Avatar
    Joanne

    lichen and liverworts are the Beacons of a healthy eco-system. My husband the Botanist studied them. And one day at work at the library I had a very long and interesting conversation with a professor of Botany who taught (loved) lichens and liverworts and told me how they are the “canaries in the coal mine” of the Earth.
    I love seeing them in the woods here in Maine. Gives me Hope.

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  4. Michelle Slater Avatar

    Joanne might offer some websites to explore when you can and they are very beautiful. Golly I’m so grateful you were able to return. Bless you all. I wonder if your internet will work again and if your post office is functioning. The essential thing is you are home again.

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  5. jaime Avatar
    jaime

    You sound so happy and well rested and ready to go! Yay!
    I heard reports of people who sheltered in the water as the the fire roared above them. It was not recommended but the small stream that runs through the property gives you options for keeping things not so dry. I remember reading in Buffalo Bird Woman’s Garden about digging into the banks of the streams to make storage pits for winter food. I don’t know why I’m bringing this up. Just a thought running through my addled brain.
    I wondered about Cinderella and the stress of all this. Was she seen by a vet while she was there? You guys did such a great job with yourselves and all the animals. Yes, things to learn but good job too. Good night.

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  6. Yvette Avatar

    Pffffffff so relieved
    Love

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  7. Mo Crow Avatar

    love seeing the magic of rain with your lichens & mosses, you have lived there for nearly one year now so you have observed all the seasons, where the land holds moisture even when it’s dry, the sheltered places, the windblown dry spots, the spaces that need to be kept clear for firebreaks & a double fenced run leading to holding yard with a loading ramp for getting the bucks and herd moved easily would be good in the not too faraway!

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  8. Liz A Avatar

    you lead me to believe anything is possible … in the best way

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  9. ² Avatar
    ²

    you do it so well my dearest lady’s , the power woman ,the power of man ,the power op our growing plants …. great is it to learn about all those given things ; your sharing all this make me to…. insight in othther ‘s living places ; BIG HUG from over the ocean

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  10. Patty Avatar

    Big lessons shared with us. Thank you.

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  11. grace Forrest Avatar

    no. for us, no one left behind.
    for others, ones left behind. Many will not be claimed.

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  12. grace Forrest Avatar

    yes. i think that too. any repair repairs the Universal threads, we weave and weave our small part

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  13. grace Forrest Avatar

    then, here too. I will call them that…say…Hello,Canaries
    i love that you tell me this

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  14. grace Forrest Avatar

    Michelle…Jude only did that one post for me. It’s been me
    the rest of the time My post office is just as always.

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  15. grace Forrest Avatar

    the stream, the creek/canal. Yes. The Cal Fire people use it. This is good for us because they are right here, so close.
    and the creek/canal, it’s COLD. if i needed to….You are bringing it up because it is essential information for log in to the rolodex of the mind.
    Cinderella…she looked really Good when there. Eyes Bright, her unicorn horn lovely. We debated about
    mentioning it to the UC Davis Vets. But didn’t. A preexisting. and they were there for the burns, etc.

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  16. grace Forrest Avatar

    All this. And We GO.

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  17. grace Forrest Avatar

    it can be many things

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  18. grace Forrest Avatar

    yes, Maria. We learn. How we live. Here and Far Away.
    learning and learning that Love is the bottom line….

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  19. Laura R Avatar
    Laura R

    Upheaval. I’m thinking of you, and everyone.

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  20. Peggy McG Avatar
    Peggy McG

    your pictures of lichen and mosses, such vivid color. Inspiring.

    Like

  21. KAMFreeman Avatar

    Grace your lichen and moss photos are wonderful. They bring me back to about 1978 when I read of making great cloth dyes from lichens and mosses and began the collection as I hiked in the Olympic Mountains with my children. Each gathering place was only very gently disrupted as we wanted to be sure each plant could thrive on in the future. We each carried a small cloth bag and when home put them in 5 gallon containers with urea or whatever that old manual suggested and stored and stirred regularly for a year or two and then dyed the fibers I was spinning…silk, flax. linen, cotton and wool. What luscious colors.So many purples, mauves and unimaginable results…but I trusted that old text and so the adventures went on for many years of pleasure. I did no cloth dyeing then, but am planning some hikes with my daughter to gather again and this time for cloth.
    What a treasure your land is! Grazing and some freedom to roam for the goats, Talkie so happy and Tay right by your side..that land has shown so much to you in just one year of seasons…and it will continue to provide nourishment and learning experiences for a lifetime..what good fortune for you all to be together there…and safe, and warm and open to the journey. Bless you, and many thanks for sharing the stories of the every day. Kristin

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  22. grace Forrest Avatar

    Laura…i think, constantly, about what it was and
    what it IS..constantly.

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  23. grace Forrest Avatar

    sometimes they can be better, but it’s just chance. I’ll
    keep taking them, will catch that moment

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  24. grace Forrest Avatar

    i THANK YOU for this, they are MANY, abounding, and i need to go BE with them, to try to know how i can harvest a
    little…
    Love so much your words here…i noted it in the stenographer’s pad Record so i can return to them in the next days.

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