The senses....

The days, they are full. I am trying to "live in the moment" and take in all that is around me so I decided to  share some of the things I see, hear, smell, feel, and taste.  Beware, not all things will be pleasant.
 
I see.....
Pink morning skies; snow, snow, snow; my breath; hat hair; eagle pairs; yellow cats on gray fences; chickens that want out of the coop; eggs in my bucket, strong men flipping bales from a stack; strong men grabbing ewes on the fly; my grandgirl carrying her own crook; two crooks hanging in the rafters; a dead skunk; three dead lambs; fresh straw for the jugs (pens); week-old lambs frisking and playing together (just like the storybooks); Mary Toodles smiling up at me.

I smell....
Ammonia and manure at the sheep shed and on the bottom of my boots; summer when I open an alfalfa hay bale; the dead skunk; that fresh, earthy smell when snow melts into the ground; ham frying for breakfast; milk when I feed the bum lambs; greasy lanolin when I rub down the bummies after their feeding; fresh paint; soapy-clean after a hot shower; line-dried sheets when I went to sleep last night; fresh coffee when I rise in the morning.

I hear....
The pick-up trucks running as they warm up each morning, the coffee trickle into the pot, boots tromping off the snow on the front porch; soft newborn baa's and mothering murmurings as ewes imprint their lambs at birth; the metal gate creaking as it swings; the sliding shed door; the newly-arriving blackbirds chortling, an owl hooting at dusk;  banging ice from water buckets, dogs whimpering in excitement to go with me in the truck; the guys radio-ing me; the water running into the bath tub.

 
I taste...
Ham & eggs for breakfast and honey on toast for breakfast-dessert; black coffee; freshly-made cake doughnuts; milk; brown beans; afternoon oatmeal cookies; snow when Hazel Peach offers me a bite of her snowball;  fresh, clean water; grilled cheese sandwiches; more hot coffee.

I feel....
Tired; energized; cold; sick of winter and cold days; finally warm in the hot bath; glad that I can work hard and go to bed tired; blessed to live in the country and to be a part of new life; wet, cold hands dipping out chunks of ice from buckets; sorry for lambs with no mothers; happy for lambs with good mothers; sorry for lambs with crazy mothers; physically stronger for the hard work; hungry; like I need a nap; the need for spring; warm wool slippers on my feet; slimy, wet lambs in my hands; wet gloves; hugs from my family; satisfaction.