Charmed...

 Sometimes, I reflect upon the fact that I live a charmed existence. Today was one of those times. 

Happy the Goat had a romantic interlude with a buck five months ago. Today was her due date, and she obliged by delivering two healthy, robust kids precisely on schedule. I was in the house and heard her bleat loudly twice. I rushed outside and found a just-born buckling who had not taken his first breath yet. I helped his mama dry him off a little. He was standing within moments and nursing seconds later. I knew another kid was coming, so I settled on an overturned bucket to watch the magic happening. It was a beautiful day, warm with a soft wind. I settled down and watched Mama Goat cleaning her baby, chuckling the soft call that mother goats use to converse with their kids. After about twenty minutes, Happy bleated in discomfort again. I turned my video camera on and caught her giving one mighty push and delivering a perfect little doeling. 

Before she was dried off or standing, she crawled on her bent front legs to begin nursing, vocalizing all the way. She's tiny and chatty and wears four black boots. 

After the first kid was born, the other two adult goats in the herd raced, danced, and celebrated in the most delightful caprine manner. Then, they returned to watch what was happening inside the Cozy with great fascination. 

                                         

As if all of this were not wonderful enough, Chris cooked giant lobsters for supper.

 A friend joined us, and we feasted at the picnic table, surrounded by cows grazing in the pasture, birds stitching through the sky, and trees whispering as breezes made music through the leaves. A fire snapped and popped in the fire ring. After dinner, our friend rocked back in her chair and sighed, "It's a good life, isn't it?" It is. I'd even say it's charmed.