Exceptional How does God put up with us? Glimpses by Janilou A Rainbow Gate Farm Life Analogy, or not.

Living with over three hundred dairy goats is like residing in one of those walk-through aquariums at Seaworld, as one of the fishes. Yes, that's right. I never know when I am going to get my head bitten off by a cantankerous doe masquerading as a shark!   Haven't you ever wandered through one of those amazing displays and wondered, 'How do they all get along? All those different kinds of fish swimming side-by-side with their natural enemies. It's amazing.' Yep, just like living here on the dairy farm. Every day, I swim among the sharks, uh, walk among the goats and wonder at the difference in people, uh, goats. I'm not making much sense, am I? Okay, maybe the goats can explain it better. Here's Hannah: Hi, my name is Hannah. I am a doeling, another word for a one-year-old goat. I love being milked. Every morning, Jani runs us all in to a big holding area. We have to wait a few minutes while she sets up the milking parlor, but as soon as she opens the door, I'm ready and waiting. I run in and jump on the milking deck to eat my grain, which is delicious. I stand very still while Janilou puts a milker on my teats. Ten minutes later, she opens the door and lets us out. It's great! When I get back out to the barn, there's fresh hay waiting for me. Finally I go outside in the sunshine, nibble grass and rest. Right now, our boyfriends, the billies, are visiting us. They smell so good! Life is fantastic here on Rainbow Gate Farm. Twenty minutes out of my day in exchange for everything my heart desires! So, that's Hannah's viewpoint. Now, if I can drag Jumper over to the computer, we will hear her point-of-view. Come on, girl. Honestly, it will only take a minute of your time. Yeah, that's easy for her to say. This is Jumper and I must say first, I hate typing.  In fact, I hate everything about my life. It's a nightmare. Every morning before the sun comes up, that person, Janilou, herds us all into a big pen with huge walls. We stand there for hours. Hours! Finally, when there's only about twenty of us left to milk, Janilou comes out and chases us into the parlor. It's noisy and hot. Yeah, we get some grain to eat, but why shouldn't we? We deserve more, but she never gives us enough.   I get really bored standing there being milked. When Janilou isn't looking, I jump off the milking-deck and run. If I time it right, I can drag the milkers off at least four or five other goats as I go. You should see Janilou freak out when I do that! The other does all think something bad is happening because I'm running so they all try to jump off the deck, too. Heh, heh. Serves her right for making us stand out there so long. She drags me on the deck again and snaps a chain on my collar so I'm stuck. By the time she cleans up the mess I created, it takes another ten minutes to finish the group. Finally, she lets us out.  I bite her hand when she tries to untie me. There's never enough good hay left, so I have to eat what's left over. As if that's not bad enough, those dumb billy goats are hanging around by the waterer. Life stinks. Two does, same scenario. One of them spends about twenty minutes a day doing what I ask of her, reaps the benefits and goes on with her life. The other one spends almost five hours a day. Amazing. Both are given the same opportunities, yet their lives are so different. I often wonder if God doesn't shake His head as He looks down and says, "I've provided everything they need to be happy, and yet, they hang back, waiting, complaining, begrudging and enduring what should be a wonderful experience - life." I wish I could say I'm always on Hannah's team, but I've found myself on Jumper's chain-gang more days than I like to admit.    God loves us, and He gives us the strength to endure the challenges of our lives. Sometimes though, we complain over situations full of blessings, if we would only open our eyes and smell the billy goats, I mean, the roses. I'll meet you at the gate first thing tomorrow morning. Don't be late. Recognized Author Notes A doeling - a female goat under the age of two years. Milker - the automatic unit used to milk a goat or a cow. I tried to introduce you to two new 'girls' in this story! I don't think Hannah and Jumper have helped me write before. Yes, billy goats stink to high-heaven during breeding season. If you want to know why, PM me and I will fill you in! Be warned, it is't a pretty mental image! I hope to have time to write some different articles, and short stories very soon. But for those FanStorians who seem to enjoy my Rainbow Gate Farm stories, I hope this one finds you having a wonderful day. Janilou

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