Friday afternoon nine of us left Battersea to enjoy the Bank Holiday weekend on the Farm. Everyone was very excited about renewing acquaintances, and making new ones on the farm – human and animal! All but one of us were return visitors and knew what to expect! We arrived Friday evening and were welcome by Serena and Alethe with a delicious supper. On Saturday we were up with the lark (actually the cuckoo!) at 7.30am to feed the three sows and their piglets, the noisy gilts (female pigs not yet put to the boar), Boris the boar, the geese and ducks, and the new chickens being looked after by the enormous rooster, Christopher Columbus! An extra delight was some Muscovy ducklings born a couple of weeks ago and still downy and soft and sheltering under mum’s wings.
Then it was a day at the beach! Windy but sunny and we enjoyed ice creams, fish and chips, and a long, sandy beach.
Sunday was up to Broadaford to watch Will tagging and ringing the last of the lambs, and then cuddle time with the orphans. Church was at Poundsgate in the afternoon, where we shared how much Shallowford had meant to us over the years – for one her first trip was aged 12 and she was still coming back at age 43!
Our bible discussions were a high point during the weekend and the message ‘Come to Jesus – go in peace’ came over strongly. One of the group said the discussions were helping her to find out who she really is. We all talked about finding our identity in God. And with the evidence of lambs, bluebells, rocks and hills it was easy to see the work of God outside, and to acknowledge his work on the inside of us.
Shallowford –we will be back!