Pro 2:6 For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
So now, we had the land. We had utilities. The closing went smoothly, and by March, we were farmers! What lessons we had to learn. We acquired our first “herd” of goats from the seller. He needed two months to move out, so instead of paying us to rent in money, he paid us in goats. While we gave him time to move, we moved onto my grandparents’ property in our 40′ camper.
We ended up acquiring from Jack three full-grown nannies, one was already pregnant, and six kids. Two kids had to be bottle-fed twice a day every day, which was a new experience for us. But we were excited. One of the bottle-fed kids was a full-blooded Boer buck. We were getting started on the right foot, especially since, he wasn’t related to any of the full-grown does. Plus, Jazmyn and Asher thought it was great fun to feed the goats. They looked forward to feeding time every day.
Everything seemed to be going great, until, I found out how easily a goat could be taken away. We didn’t do very good research, and it never occurred to us that we needed protection for our goats from outside predators. The previous owner, Jack, told us that coyotes were rampant in the country, and we needed to look into something, like a livestock guard dog or a donkey. He just so happened to have a donkey he was willing to sell for $50 to us to watch the goats. We decided to buy the donkey.
Well, another lesson learned is that donkeys are great to guard livestock, except for one bad tendency, to go a little crazy and stomp a goat to death. Unfortunately, that is what happened, one kid was killed, and we hadn’t even moved out there yet. We gave back the donkey and started researching dogs, but before we bought a dog, another two kids disappeared. The weird thing was there was no body. We couldn’t blame it on Jack because he was gone to Alabama moving some of his stuff.
The reality hit both Josh and me, goats are completely defenseless. We realized we needed a dog fast. We were now down to the three full-grown nannies and three kids. Sadly, one of the kids lost was the bottle-fed female. Thankfully, we never lost the buck.
I can still hear Josh, “Brandy, stop worrying so much. We still have a baby buck, and before we know it, he will breed with our does. Losing livestock is all part of farming, and if we are going to become farmers, we have to accept that there will be losses.”
I tried hard to find the positives and this one fact, still having a buck, was one of the main things that kept me going. Jack still needed time to move, which was stressful, but I focused on the reality that each passing day got us closer to living on our land.
One day in May, I was going to the farm to feed the buck. We were hoping to move out to the farm in a few days. The excitement of the idea of finally living on the land filled my soul, but the excitement was mingled with fear also. There was a dark cloud over the farm on my way there. At the time, it matched my mood. I was tired, overwhelmed, anxious, and frustrated. Traveling back and forth from my grandparents to the farm twice a day was taking its toll.
Worry filled my thoughts, “Would I get there, to find another goat gone?”
But before I turned down our road, I told myself, “Brandy, you have to stop this constant worrying. The Father is with you through the dark times and the bright times. Just be thankful to have land and patient with everything else.”
Even though it was my mind speaking to me, I truly feel that when I actually tell myself something wise that it is coming from the Holy Spirit. I know that the Holy Spirit is our comforter, and there are many times that I have to lean on this fact.
When I got to the farm that day, sure enough, I found everything fine. My mood brightened, and as if the Father wanted to let me know that He was with me, the skies cleared and the sun’s light descended over the farm, and peace again filled my soul. I felt that He was with us and would see us through this new adventure. My mind wandered to the scriptures from Philippians chapter four, which tells us to not “be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4: 6-7).
By the end of May, we were finally on the property. Now it was time to get to work. I was getting used to bottle-feeding our buck. I wanted to make him healthy and strong. He was our future in the goat world. We also found a good dog. This time I researched before purchasing because I had learned my lesson by now. I found out that a good guard dog breed was the Great Pyrenees. It was funny because a few years before when Jazmyn was a baby I had seen a Discovery special on this breed and ever since then I wanted one. So, finally, I was shopping for the dog I wanted. The only problem was it wasn’t going to be a pet. The dog had a job, so, no nice beautiful fluffy dog in my lap because the field would be its home.
We found a female that was already used to livestock. Her name was Angel, and she sure was an angel. She was young, but she did her job. We didn’t lose any more goats for a while to coyotes. I felt confident in becoming a farmer, at least for a while.
Look before you leap
We must take the time to learn before acting but do not over-research. That sounds like an oxymoron, but the truth is that research should be used in a productive quantity. You need to learn the basics of what you are planning to do, especially if there are legal matters and hurdles you may have to face. But there is much research out there, and after a while, if you research too much it may stop you from going after your dreams.
So, when I say “look before you leap” that is what I mean. Look how other people may have done it if it has been done before, and if it hasn’t been done before, then look around you to see if you are fulfilling a need. Pay attention to people that have advice for you, just don’t let them overwhelm you. All you need is some background of what you are getting involved in so that it isn’t all new to you. Use wisdom when researching like the writer of Ecclesiastes states in 12: 12, “And more than these, my son, be warned: The making of many books has no end, and much study is the weariness of the flesh.”
There is an endless supply of information out there, especially with the internet and all the so-called experts in the world. Getting a basic idea of what you are doing is wise, but trying to figure it all out before you start is impossible to do. You will never have time to read all the information out there, so don’t even try, or you will never be able to begin your new adventure.