Slice of Almost Heaven Blog

Do you really mean those words??

10/28/2018

If you have been reading this blog for any length of time you will know Michelle and I have been married for over 20 years. I do not know any people who go into marriage thinking they are going to get a divorce ( we did not).

So, on that fateful day, you look into the eyes of the love of your life and make a vow to them. First off what is a vow? It is a promise to the other person. In our case, it was a vow we made to each other and to The Lord. A promise that should not be broken. We both took our vows very seriously.

Over the years storms have come and gone. There have been countless times I did not “like” Michelle and for her, it was the same. There have been times when each of us has stormed off mad. But over all the years we ALWAYS followed one rule. Never go to bed mad at the other. At times it is not easy, but we do not violate that rule. At those times I wanted to walk out, but where would I go? She is my Mechelle, she is a part of me, like a hand or foot. It would be easier to cut off a hand then walk out on her. You may think this is melodramatic but for us, it is the truth.

So the question I have to ask, did you really mean the words you spoke that day??

Where were you that September Day?

9/11/2018

September 11, 2001, most of us my age or older remember that fateful day.

I vividly remember what I was doing that day, the horror and fear I felt. Michelle was at school with her students, some had a parents in the towers. As the day unfolded and the towers collapsed, our shock and deep fear grew. In a moment our collective innocence was stripped away never to return. The world was a different place now. Later that day, Michelle and I took it upon ourselves to do something to help cope with the shear enormously of what had happened that day. At the time, we had a cleaning and maintenance business. We traveled to each condominium complex and lowered the flags to half staff (no small feat since we had 26 complexes).

As we drove from place to place, we saw people like us in shock and disbelief. We drove into Sea Bright, a small shore town at the edge of Sandy Hook Bay. The New York skyline could be clearly seen in the distance. That is when we first saw it. Instead of seeing two towers all we saw was smoke rising from where the tower had been. We just stood there for a while trying to make sure that our eyes were seeing what was before us. It was real, it was personal. The next day Michelle found out one of her students lost her father in one of the towers. He called his wife and told her he loved her. That was the last time she ever heard from him.

Things changed quickly, our local military base was now locked down. Soldiers were guarding the gates with M16s where hours before this was a open base to all. I was sick for days after, I wondered if there was something sinister in the gray dust.

Time moves on and the years pass by, we moved to West Virginia and I started my new career at WVU. Each September 11th, the ROTC has a 24 hour vigil. For years now when I come to work before dawn. I go and pay my respects, as I approach the tears start to flow. By the time I get there, I can barely speak, I try to say thank you and that I saw the smoke from the towers. Most times I can only get out thank you before I am consumed it full blown grief.

This year due to a mixup I was ask to do something, a thing most would not think as important. I as asked to lower the flags on the downtown campus. This was not a job for me, it was an act of reverence. I bowed my head and cried again. Then lowered the flags like I did 17 years before. The pain was raw and the tears flowed hot.

I thought of all the people who died that day. All the brave men and women who ran into those towers, knowing this was a one way trip and went anyway. "No one shows greater love than when he lays down his life for his friends" John 15:13 ISV

As I wrote the verse above, I was reminded once again of the person who willingly died for me so I may live. He lived a sinless life and chose to die to atone for me and each of us. When I see my risen Savor, I fall to my knees, I will behold his nail scarred hands.

Then I will truly know the depths of his perfect love...

Country Roads

8/19/2018

Photo of WV road by http://www.forestwander.com/

The iconic song “Country Roads” by John Denver has a special meaning to both of us. This is due to the song intersecting both of our lives multiple times spanning a time period of over thirty years. Dating back to before we ever met.

For me the date was June 1984, I was living in New Jersey. I get a copy of a photographic magazine. Inside I find an article about cave photography. Intrigued, I reread the article several times. I kept thinking about the article and I sent a letter requesting more information. A few weeks later I get a standard information packet from the national cave organization. It was nice but it did not give me any local contacts. Fast forward a year to 1985, I get a letter from a local cave club in New Jersey. I called them and started going with them to explore some wild caves. All this time they talked in glowing term of the BIG CAVES in West Virginia. Finally, they formed a trip to Lewisburg WV. On the 8 hour trip down they played Country Roads over and over. When our vehicle crossed the state line, I started to understand. The more time I spent in WV the harder it was to leave. My heart was so sad when I crossed the line to head back to New Jersey. I never forgot my time in West Virginia, I went on several more trips there. Each time I fell more deeply in love with that special place.

That same year Michelle was in basic training at Fort Dix, New Jersey and took a field trip to Fort Monmouth, which was only 4 miles from my house. That was her first time that far away from her WV home she loved. It was her first time in NJ, but not her last....

In 1998, I went on a Christian Dating site, a few days later Michelle wrote me. We talked and I found out she lived in Lewisburg, WV. I told her I was there in 1985 caving, she was not impressed. We talked, fell in love and I drove down to meet her face to face. We got married later that year, and she moved to New Jersey, we lived there for 8 years. But her heart was in a place south of New Jersey, in those sweet mountains of West Virginia. For me the tug to move to WV kept getting stronger. We played "County Roads" to death on our CD player as we both dreamed of some day returning to WV. When we were doing the final part of the remodeling in the condo before the big move we made a CD of WV songs. Different versions of "Country Roads" was on it. That CD is what kept us going when we just wanted to give up.

In 2006 we moved to Kingwood, WV and never looked back. We live on a farm high in the mountains. Life is hard here, but we love it. This is where those country roads took us home. To the place our heart will always belong......

Buck in Training

7/29/2018

This is a picture of Tre, our newest buckling (on the left). He is getting along well with the other guys, but he is already feeling his "oats" and taking his turn on "The Rock".

"The Rock" is where the senior buck will stand and survey his domain (see picture on the right). Tre is trying it on for size.

From the look of his face, it feels pretty good!

Goat Boardwalk

7/6/2018

Sometimes I wonder, about the lengths we go to, for the health and welfare of our goats. Living in the mountains our challenge has always been to guide the water that flows after a rainstorm away from the entrance to the does barn. View the following Sway to discover our solution to the problem.

My Name is Zippo, and I have DGS*

6/11/2018

My name is Zippo and I suffer from DGS*.

At this time there is no cure for DGS*, but researchers keep trying to find a treatment for this aliment.

Symptoms can cause panic and shock in goat keepers because they are so startling, but is not fatal.

I can live out a normal life with it. It just entails my caretakers to know the signs and treating me accordingly. The intensity of the symptoms increases with the temperatures. Hence, in the wintertime I do not have any attacks.

Tell your goat herding friends about DGS*, before it happens to them.

My Name is Zippo, I have DGS*.

Goat suffering from DGS

Photo courtesy of Dahlia May’s Farm

*For those of you who have not seen this it is called Dead Goat Syndrome. A goat with DGS lays down in the pasture like it is dead, but they are enjoying the sunshine. The goat herder panics and runs to their aid, then when get up to the goat, it looks up incredulously at them and seems to say "What’s your problem?"

Now THAT's Service!! Delivered to your Door

5/28/2018

When you think of chickens, you do not think of a bird with great mental powers.

But, you do not know our chickens. You see we have a special chicken. Each night during the summer she delivers her egg at our doorstep. Right around 6 pm each and every night she lays her egg. I try to watch for her but she seems to be shy. She just lays her egg, walks off merrily on her way, her deed for the day is done.

So if you stop by early one evening. You may want to watch your step.

My Name Was Ginger

5/6/2018

First, I will start this post by saying that I am not blaming her new owners for what happend. I am using her death as a public service announcement in hopes that this does not happen to another family.

I called this post, "My Name Was Ginger" because she passed away on May 4, 2018. Ginger was a great doe and I really cared for her. She was the first animal born on my farm to officially carry the Sliceofalmostheaven herdname. My plans were to keep her here until her natural death, many years from now. But she proved to aggressive once she became herd queen to be in a larger herd. So she was sold. Thankfully, I have a daughter that is the spitting image and personality of her mother, minus the aggressiveness.

She passed away because of an occurrence that I have heard far too often. She was tied out in a field to graze unsupervised. I do not know all of the details, but I'm sure she either got entangled and hung herself or fell somehow and hung herself. No matter how it happened the results were the same, a dead goat.

I impolor anyone who has goats, PLEASE do not tie out your goat. You might get lucky and not have anything happen the first time, but goats are good at getting into trouble. Also, a stray dog (coyote) could come around while you are away and kill the goat. Being tied up they cannot get away.

I always think of my goats as 3yr old children, and treat them as such when it comes to their safety. We have GFCI plugs in the barn so the goats do not fry themselves or burn down the barn. We use safety heat lamps with redundant connections so the kids do not burn the milkbarn down. You get the idea.

The final thing I will say on this topic is for anyone wanting to tie out a goat (or any other livestock) plan on supervising the animal, better yet buy temporary fencing. Don't suffer the heartbreak of a dead animal.

Super Mom

4/22/2018

This is one of our turkeys, she is a Super Mom. Let me explain, about three weeks ago someone hit the steel guard protecting our mailbox. I went out to straighten the dented steel and pick up what was left of their mirror. I looked over and I saw her sitting in the ditch next to the road. As I drew near it became evident see was sitting on eggs.

Michelle and I hatched (no pun intended) a plan. Well after dark we crept down to her, I shined a bright light at her. This would hopefully blind her as Michelle came up to grab her. Well at the last instant she jumped and Michelle was able to grab her. I then gathered her eggs. We put them and her into a movable pen. With God's Grace she sat back down on the eggs. She hatched out seven of the eggs we retrieved. Considering where she was sitting she would have been buried by the snow plow when it snowed after that and the chicks would have been run over being so close to the road. So we think she is super!

It's GO TIME!!!

3/24/2018

This is George, of "Curious George" fame. He is our last kid this kidding season.

The season was short but full of excitement. From marathon late night watching sessions, each of us taking turns looking to see if the doe was ready to go. The terror of a stuck kid and trying to deliver them alive without damaging the dam. Thankfully, that does not happen often.

During this time, one of us would say, "It is TIME!" Then we both instantly know is was "GO TIME". We both know what the other needs to do. I am the "Midwife" getting supplies and instruments ready as Michelle helps deliver the kid.

We would go from fast asleep to fully awake in two second flat. To say we are glad we are done is an understatement. The box score is five bucks and four does. All kids and their moms are doing well. THANK YOU LORD!