Stopping to Smell the Roses on the Farm

I took a walk today with three young boys.

First they followed me throughout the barn while I did the chores. Asking questions and admiring the birds.

The turkeys were scared of these unknown beings that just wanted to watch them. And so they backed up into a corner. But the Cornish cross chickens didn’t even seem to notice the boys, but rushed out of the barn to eat their food.

Similarly, the laying hens didn’t pay much attention to the boys after their hands were emptied of feed. And the guard goose ran out into the yard, where there were no humans.

Noticing the hens sitting on their nests, they wanted to help pick the eggs. Some of these hens are broody and don’t want anything to approach them while they sit on the nest. So the boys had to be careful not to be pecked by them.

Other hens just didn’t want to be there and flew up out of the nests in alarming directions that caused everyone to laugh.

After taking the eggs to the house, I decided to check on the gardens. The boys came along. First we admired the growth of the peas and then looked at the spinach. They like to eat freshly picked veggies, so we sampled some.

The rhubarb was starting to produce seeds, which I don’t want, so those were pruned off and the boys had some stalks to munch on as we continued our walk.

We followed Schwartz over a hill to see what he was chasing. While we were there, they spotted some blooming rose bushes. There is nothing like the scent of a wild rose, and the taste of the rose petals is a sweet, perfumy experience. So I shared it with them.

As we walked back to the house, we came across other flowers and budding plants. Along the way I would pick a flower or be presented with one and soon I collected a small bouquet of wild flowers. The hillside was filled with Yukon perennials that withstand cold, harsh winters and dry summers. Yet they seemed to flourish without anyone tending them.

This reminded me of another walk I took a few days ago, this time with my mother. She was visiting from Saskatchewan and wanted to take some pictures of the area around our farm.

We went up the hill, to the base of the ridge that runs along our property, and enjoyed the views. Taking pictures as we went.

The most remarkable was of a rose growing out of a lichen-covered boulder. I knew that they were hardy plants, but this seemed to show just how hardy they actually were. There didn’t seem to be any soil whatsoever that this small plant was growing in. But it wasn’t just growing, it was also in full bloom.

Amazing what you’ll find when you stop and smell the roses.


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