Settling Into Summer...

(The picture I posted seemed to be a rarity to me. A bear and a deer standing together, perhaps not happily for the deer, but together nonetheless. The deer never moved and never took its eyes off the bear. When the bear was startled and ducked into the hedgeline, the deer took off in a big hurry! The picture is grainy, as it was at dusk and I got what I could when I could get it. But, you get the picture! Look to the left of the bear and you'll see a little cub's head popped up out of the wheat. There are 3 cubs, I discovered, but I couldn't seem to get them all popping up at once!)
Poppy, Petal, Cinnamon and Muffin all seem to be doing quite well. They are adjusting to us, actually better than I thought they would. I'm sure they got plenty of spoiling in at Ronnie and Anita Bentley's, so I wasn't sure if I could make the grade! Everything is going really well and I'm pleased.
Summer is here and all the things that come with it. Animal life is abundant...deer are plentiful and so are the animals that are stunning, but you don't want to meet in the dark! Take for example the bear across the street. Yep, a big ol' bear. Well, let me just be out with it and say MASSIVE. She's a mama bear with three cubs. I was taking pictures of her on Sunday and the cubs were playing off to her side. She walked up on a deer that was already grazing the wheat field. I could feel fear all the way across that field coming from the deer! I'm not sure what I would have done either. I watched Nature handle it. The bear got distracted and the deer ran toward me.
This time of year, I worry a lot about predators. At dusk, I get all the animals up and secured for the night as best I can. That was part of the reason to want donkeys too. They're wonderful herd protectors. The goats are really tough in the daylight! They can also get away quickly. Night is another matter entirely though. I heard a noise last night and walked out to find the goats upstairs here at the house! Sophie was leading the pack and they needed an escort back down the the shed. I had already put them up and clearly, one slipped out...and the rest followed. Goats do that you know. They don't even have to particularly like each other, yet they'll still follow the crowd around! That's funny to me and I've yet to figure out why peer pressure is so important in a goat world!
I've been packing this morning. We're leaving in a couple of hours to go down to Wilmington. I'll be playing on the USS North Carolina this evening. John Golden hosts a Hootenanny event every summer to raise funds for the battleship. What a FUN gig it is too! I get to see all my pals, the atmosphere is just beautiful out on the fantail of the ship and the crowds of people are great.
It's interesting to me when we do these hootnanny's. There is such a variety in age groups. There are families with young kids, there are college kids, there are folks who are retired, even vacationers! You name it...you'll find it there. It's always gorgeous whent he sun starts to dip behind the trees and waterline in the evening. This show is for a good cause. So many people, school groups, etc. visit the USS North Carolina each year. It makes me feel good to do a little something to keep her going.
I will look forward to seeing lots of smiling faces this evening. I'll see old friends and hopefully make some new ones.
I lead a very blessed life and I am fully aware of it. Life is not a drudgery for me, nor is it "work." It just "is" and it's wonderful. It took me a long time to get to this place...the place where I have learned how to just "be." And just "being" is absolutely alright by me.
Here's hoping to see you soon, if not on the battleship tonight, then out there somewhere!
Hee haw, baaaaah, woof, quack and meow to you all!

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