Begin Again

Things are changing here at Moon in the Pond.

This is obvious; things are always changing here at Moon in the Pond. But today was momentous, and I felt a certain seriousness all day. Jerred, the other intern here, finished up yesterday, and the kitchen table was conspicuously smaller without him. Dan, a former apprentice, was here this weekend, but left today. This leaves Dom and me to run the farm, a somewhat daunting task for someone who’s been here so briefly.

Honeysuckle, our dairy cow, finally gave birth sometime between yesterday afternoon and this morning, as I walked into the pasture today and out of the mist stumbled an uncertain calf. I sympathized completely with her. I, too, am feeling like I’ve been given a brilliant cacophony to absorb and deal with, and I’m just stumbling to keep my feet underneath me.

We separated the calf and her mother today so that we can milk Honeysuckle by hand to regulate productivity, which means we feed the calf by hand as well. I learned that the first milk a cow produces after giving birth is called colostrum. It’s a super milk, highly rich in proteins, fats, sugars, and all kinds of nutrients the newborn needs to energize it as soon as it comes into the world. So, day by day, the calf grows stronger. We just need a little bit of fortification.

It’s starting to get cold. The weather forecast for this week harbors brisk temperatures and threatens frost. My toes are cold when I let the chickens out in the morning. And so I wear my flannel, and I wear my wool socks, and I welcome the autumn air which smells so full of comfort.