War With a Walking Stick!

What did I think I was going to do to the coyote chasing my chickens when all I had in my hand was a walking stick?  LoL!  I don't know, but all I knew was something was after my chickens and chicks.  I flew out the door screaming my head off like a mad woman.  My poor Fern couldn't be convinced that her chicks were safe with the other hens.  She kept going back to the edge of the woods with the lurking danger calling as desperately for her chicks as I was calling for her to come back and trust me.  Luckily, this time, I won.  Mama and her walking stick scared off the coyote.  :)

The most amazing part was that when the chickens started going crazy, I was reading the last few lines of an article in the magazine "Above Rubies".  The article was by a woman shepherd comparing her experiences as a "mother shepherd" to God as our shepherd.  She had discussed how the shepherd knows the cries of his sheep and loves them.  The shepherd knows the dangers and does all he can to protect the flock.  My flock that was crying out was not sheep.  It was chickens, but I heard their cry.  I knew I had to act quickly to help.  Isn't that beautiful to think we are God's sheep.  He knows our dangers, and He knows our cries, whether it is a cry for love, a cry for need, or a cry for help.  If we as humans are quick to act to the cry of the creatures in our care, how much swifter God's reaction to us must be!  I had tried to call Fern.  She couldn't understand I heard her calling her babies and I heard her cries for me to help  She couldn't be still and calm enough to understand me and hear her babies calling her.  Isn't that the way it is with us and God?  We get into situations where we cry out to God.  We are so caught up in the emotions of what we are going through, we fail to hear God or see His answer.  Yet, He loves us deeply, and continues to call out His answers to us, if we could just be still in mind, body, and soul.  He is always there answering!

Later in the day, we found one of our little friends that has been hanging around the farmette.

This is a gopher tortoise.  These are an endangered species and are Georgia's state reptile.  We have several on our property.  We don't usually know which one we are looking at, so the turtle usually gets called Mr. Carmicheal.  The people who are native to our area actually call these totoises gophers. Talk about confusing!  :)

We thought the excitement for the day was over this evening until we were winding down our outside activities.  Alissa discovered a hummingbird in the garage.  Thankfully, this time, unlike last summer when the same thing happened, Bill was at home.  He finally got it out with a fish net.

Who needs a science textbook when one lives on Southland Farm?  :)

Thank you for spending a few minutes here with us!  Until we meet again, may you be blessed!