hay baling

my dear little sister kiki is here for a visit, and we are having a lovely weekend of relaxed fun. that said, yesterday afternoon we went out to sabbath rest farm (where michael works) to help with the hay baling. they cut the hay a couple of times during the summer and put it up for winter fodder for the horses and cows. we arrived in time to watch gary driving the baler over the steep slopes, heavy bales already bound with twine dropping out of the back of the ancient machine. i was worried that benny the wonder mutt was going to try to get herself baled, but she was more interested in chasing ducks and running along side the tractor that pulled the hay trailer. katherine rode in the trailer with diane and stacked bales while michael, david, tim, his son, and i threw bales of hay up into the trailer. i admit, i was scared that i wasn't going to be able to keep up, but i did! i even threw a bale or two up onto the trailer three bales high! (as you can tell, i was rather impressed with myself.) the men very kindly arranged it so that i stayed on the high side, as i am not quite tall enough to throw them into the trailer on the down slope. i promptly bounced the first bale across the trailer and sent it tumbling down to the bottom of the slope. michael fetched it up. he's just manly like that.
i have never known people happier in their work than this cobbled together farm family. and it is hard work! they hold down regular jobs and tend their cows and fields as a labor of love. they care for their sick and elders, and live in what must be the most christian of community, yet christ rarely crosses their lips. maybe a christian's need to proclaim is inversely proportionate to their good works. that would explain their good humor and silence on the subject.
after the baling and feeding the cows (among them ferdinand the bull), peggy fed us a good supper and big michael showed us the chickens. kiki and i are in love with the chickens, and the chicken house for that matter. the michaels (big and little)built it under the tutelage of vince, who has recently passed. their respect and affection for one another is apparent in the loving craftsmanship of this humble abode. with pretty nesting boxes and wooden perches, it is also the only chicken house i have ever seen with electric light and running water. the chickens, however, are oblivious to their good fortune. they hunt and peck and scratch like any other chickens and reward their keeper with lovely pastel hued eggies. several different breeds, they cluster together with their sisters and ignore the others. i held a hen, now named hetty, who looked a lot like a hawk and is called (of all things) a sex link. she was soft and very sweet once i managed to catch her. katherine favored the americanas with their lovely colors so like a renaissance painting. (they lay blue eggs.) now, of course, we both want chickens.
it was a full day, and a fun one. and now it is time to go figure out what to do with this one.