Newspaper Articles and Liesl's
Farm Relections
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Newspaper and Magazine Articles Learning from Horses – TheHealing with Horses – The Meander Chronicle |
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Liesl's Farm Reflections Reflection 1 – Intro & Birds with small brain |
© Reflection 1 – Intro & Birds with small brains
I'm reading a book
that has inspired me to share some of my reflections on life and the world with
my friends and family. Like this author, I too find mystery, magic and
God in the small things. By no means do I think I am particularly funny or
clever or even well-versed as a writer of any description, but it does seem to
have become fairly unique these days to see the positive, the good and the
simply miraculous in everyday events. Every moment is a miracle waiting
to happen and all we need do is 'see'.
Some might argue
that seeing this much in small things is the sign of a very small mind or
perhaps even a severely demented one, but ever wondered why when you suddenly
get rained on in the middle of a car park, all you feel like doing is skipping
around, jumping in the puddles and singing “I'm singing in the rain” at the top
of your voice? Why when a small child smiles at you secretively all you
want to do is giggle and play hide-and-go-seek? I believe that we were
designed for extreme emotion, extreme sadness, extreme joy, extreme anger,
extreme love, and that somehow the world has tricked us into believing that
moderation is in fact the key to happiness. Well, actually that
consumerism is the key to happiness, but dressed up as “don't feel too much, don't
say too much, don't think too much, definitely don't
laugh too much”. No wonder our therapy practices are booming, our suicide
rates increasing and jokes are the only truly useful thing we send by
e-mail.
Raising birds with small brains
Have
you ever seen how guinea fowl walk? Take note the next time you are
fortunate enough to see them next to the road. They walk with their eyes
and beaks leading, at the end of a long neck, on tall legs (that always look
like they're dressed in badly laddered stockings) that help them see over their
terrain of tall grass. Comical looking birds really, with tiny heads,
oversized bodies and really long legs – perfectly adapted to their habitat and
never self-conscious at their appearance. They make overjoyed grating
happy noises when they find something scrumptious to eat and see each other,
and plaintive, eerie distressed noises when separated from the rest of their
family. Long sweeping suspicious sounds when confronted with something
perceived to be dangerous and small sing-song noises when putting themselves to
sleep. Extreme joy and extreme distress, nothing
in-between for these vulnerable creatures whose lives revolve around finding
enough sustenance to survive and each other for company. No 'happy
medium' here. You are never in doubt as to what emotion is being
expressed. Pure, uncensored and always honest.
When they are ill or dying, they simply sit still and make no noise, no moaning , grumbling, just acceptance at what seems
inevitable.
These birds with small brains have taught me such an ancient truth about life, love, death and everything in-between. So best I heed their helpful advice. Smile and sing when I am happy, make plaintive noises when I am separated from those dearest to me, shout my joy at being reunited, express my feelings as I feel them, be honest so no-one might ever wonder what they are dealing with, and when the end comes accept it with quiet wonder.
© Reflection 2 - The Big Picture
Tidying the shed – an activity that seems to come up at least once or
more times a year. How is it that so much
stuff, and yes, sometimes junk, piles up in such a short space of time? How on
earth is it that the rubbish bins fill up weekly, get
carted away to the dump, and still there is more? It's like tidying all those
kitchen drawers, only they're the size of the fridge and there are 10 of them!
Well, as tedious as tidying the shed can be it is also enlightening. Crazy farm
person, I know, but just consider, shaman and witches alike use tedious activities
to sink into visionary states. Besides, in my shed there lives a clever little
mouse, and whenever I lose sight of the big picture, Mouse, makes an
appearance, insists on trying to run into me, or perhaps run me over and then
disappears again. Mouse medicine by the way, is “scrutiny”. All animals have
'medicine' – the Native American concept of medicine, is anything that improves
one's connection to the Great Mystery and to all life,and would include healing of body, mind and spirit
as well as anything that brings personal power. So it seems appropriate that animals appears whenever I need to be reminded of the
connectedness of things and also healing. Sometimes as a healer you still lose
some perspective on your own need for healing.
Mouse
medicine teaches about the value in scrutinizing, tidying and having things
orderly, but also the importance in keeping sight of the big picture. Being
aware is important, both of what is in front of you and also awareness of the
big picture. Mouse teaches that it is important to sort through the chaos for
order to return. Isn't it amazing how so often we have to take care of
something tedious or mundane or ordinary in order to create the space for
something different and visionary? We have to let go or give up or sort out,
before new life and order and change can enter. It is difficult to let go at
times, much easier to stay with what is comfortable, even if painful or
detrimental.
And
so there I am tidying the shed (with a whole lot of help mind you!),
contemplating letting go, mindful of the big picture, and aware of the eternal
lesson of how when junk gets piled up in your life somehow you lack the space
for new and exciting opportunities. Somehow when we find the courage to create
the space, the next exciting chapter of the life journey has an opening. Not
that it isn't frightening, of-course it can be very scary, so by no means
should we undervalue the significance. Sometimes you need to tidy out a lot,
sometimes just a little. But whatever the amount, when we clear out that which
we no longer need in our life, the things we do need have a way of walking
straight in. I guess, by cleaning out and sorting out we offer the new an
invitation really. We do procrastinate, avoid and delay. I have been wanting to tidy the ruddy shed for years, but never
made a concerted start. I wanted to, but had to follow up with real action
toward my desire for a tidy shed. A bit like the lesson in
intention and action. You can have an intention, but unless you follow
it up with real action toward your intention, little will happen.
So
the newly tidied shed makes me happy – of-course now I need to deal with the
consequences of new opportunities – why oh why can I not just stay in my
comfort zone!! Oh, yes, that's right, the big picture – nothing will change or
be more of what I want and need unless I find the courage to make the space for
it. Thank you Lord for the provision of a shed and a certain mouse!
© Farm Reflections 3 – Four Seasons
When
you live on a farm I think you become very aware of the seasons, especially in
an area where the seasons change very obviously and where many are dependent on
grazing for animals and also grow crops. When grass grows, how much rain you
have, how much frost, wind, and all the other seasonal factors, can have a
tremendous impact on decision-making on the farm, and on the success of the
decisions you have made – either too much rain too late or too early can be
disastrous. Somehow banks don't operate according to the seasons and certainly
neither does hard industry, but animals, crops and farmers do.
In
this world of an inflated sense of control over nature and the elements, it is
humbling and at times heartening to know that mother nature
is still in charge. Well, except maybe when first your house and farm burn
down, then it is freezing cold, then it floods and then it floods again! You
can become tired of all this “nature shit”! But you can also marvel at the way
in which nature simply picks herself up after a fall and regenerates.
Seasons
– those four carefully considered times of the year. Each brings its own
blessings, beauty and hardships. I wonder, when God created seasons, which came
first? I like to think Spring was favoured – her tinseltown daintiness and light pastel shades. Her propensity for light frolicky moments
and soft musical rain that whets the appetite for lush green. Spring in all her little-girl glory with flowers in her hair.
The time for dancing to soft tunes and the romance of new
life all around.
Then
comes Summer, with her robust attitude to sunshine and
rain – as if she seeks to drench herself with as much life as she can. I think
she's probably Italian. Colours deepen and all around the time for harvest is
heralded by birds and mammals alike. Plentiful bounty, good
food, long glorious days, sweltering heat.
Autumn, that time of slowing down and beginning to consider a time of scarcity and cold. Winds arrive with a warning, days get shorter, the urgency to store and stock up and pile away carefully becomes tantamount. There is a hurry in nature's step, to complete, pack away and bunker down for what's to come.
And
finally Winter, with his grey beard and long woolen
cloak. A time of hibernation and rest. A time to
ponder what has gone before and prepare for new energy.
A
pity that we seem to ignore so much of what is natural and cyclical in favour
of controllable, replicable and all too often dull. Somehow our human race
seems to lack nature's talent for change and colour and timeliness or
completely race past the meaningful and delicate magic of living. Nature's
lessons seem so pertinent at this time. A time for new growth
and new dreams. A time for laughing and dancing and
gratitude. A time for considering and celebrating all the good people
and things in our lives – stocking the love and the good fortune in our hearts.
A time to sit back, reflect, let go and slowly start
the journey again toward birthing new ideas and talents and the magic of a life
lived to the fullest. I want to be able to honour the four seasons in my life
and annual cycle. I too want a winter to hibernate and recuperate,
regenarate in time for the spring of new
opportunities and growth. I too seek to acknowledge the harvest and revel in
the generosity of God and mother nature, to enjoy the
gifts bestowed and drink in the heat of summer. I need the time of packing
away, storing up, preparing and reviewing. Thank you nature for being
consistent while yet surprising. What a joy and blessing to live with four
seasons.
© Farm Reflection 4 - The power of the white bucket
Have
you ever owned a flock of sheep or maybe just spent some time with them? Did
you like that particular nursery rhyme, and have visions of sweet woolly
creatures adorned with just the right amount of material for a nice jersey? No,
maybe more of a 'Babe' flock, all talking and wise and philosophical and afraid
of dogs, right? Wrong – mad Pavlovian maniacs is what
they are in reality.
I
have a shepherd's crook (long thin staff with one crooked end), used to herd
and commandeer sheep. Right, of-course that would mean you'd have to actually
be walking directly in front of your flock of sheep, and use the crook to keep
any dear woolies from escaping to the much more
inviting looking grass on the other side of the fence. You would be walking
tall and looking grand with the little group of white-fleeced “Mary had a
little lamb” look-alikes gently grazing along the path heading in the direction
of wherever it is the shepherd would be taking them – you know, the scene from
so many movies. Wrong again – being stampeded, running like Bruce Fordyce
toward the Comrades finish, trying to outrun the little horde of madly, loudly
bleating maniacs cutting a path across the grass toward the feeding troughs.
Who said sheep don't have a sense of time – clearly not someone who has had the
privelege of being responsible for these particular
seedy-toothed vocal creatures.
There's
that scene in 'Babe' (the movie about the pig) where he is trying to herd the
sheep and they all run around madly, and then he asks nicely and they agree to
co-operate. Well, I'm guessing that somewhere on that particular set of the
movie, was a person with a white feed bucket. That's right, a bucket full of
feed pellets, one shake and all resistance crumbles. The sheep will do almost
anything to follow the white bucket and get a taste of what's inside! So there
I go, the glorified shepherd with my white bucket. In
fact transference happens (gosh, old Pavlov had a real point), so that you
might wield any bucket as the golden sceptre. But, of-course you're thinking,
why not use a sheepdog, especially since I have a Lassie look-alike. Wrong
again, these mad sheep chase dogs, they try to head butt them every chance they
get. This crazy horde even run after the quad bike.
Secretly we think they are sado-masochists, who like
shock therapy – as they regularly do a jailbreak through electric fences –
that's right wool comes in real handy for minimizing the sting of the current
running through the fence. I bet you Prison Break didn't think of that. The
saying, 'wolf in sheep's clothing', must have been developed by someone who
knew a sheep called Smudge, ringleader of all jailbreaks, able to give you the
sweetest, most innocent look, all the while plotting the next move. Sheep are
not stupid or even remotely idiotic. In fact I find spending time with their
particular wisdom shows me lessons I hadn't necessarily contemplated before.
There
is certainly a lot to be learnt from such single-minded determination and an
almost stubborn insistence to reach the goal. How prepared am I to overcome
every obstacle, go anywhere to get the contents of my white bucket? Sometimes I
fear the contents of my white bucket, because what if it's not as sweet an
achievement as I had hoped. Sheep don't do that, they don't second guess themselves,
they commit and that's it. And they stay focused, no matter what the
distractions along the way, all the while maintaining their sweet, accepting
approach to life, the universe and others. The only time they 'butt heads' is
when something stands in their way of reaching the white bucket. And yet it is
never in an aggressive way, just a gentle, fairly consistent push to get to
where they're going. These guys are good at healthy boundaries. And always
what's in the interest of the greater good, or the family, is also in the best
interest of the individual sheep.