Shortly after the camera and I and a new friend took a tour of the grounds, the skies opened and it poured. Though the term the ‘skies opened’ is questionable. As we walked around the skies closed above us. Then lowered down. There may have even been a string. It became darker, cosier. Like a big warm dark coat cupboard for playing hide and seek. With a pink cherry blossom jacket tucked incongruously beside you. 
However before it rained the bees continued to work. And look -a bee in the magnolia. This surprised me, I did not know that bees worked magnolias. But as the Carpenter’s Lady and I were admiring the flowers we noticed that the bees were literally climbing up the almost open petals, wriggling through the tiny gap and dropping down into the stamens. We stood and waited for ages but the bees did not come out! 
This one stumbled out after a while and slid down the flower to perch at its base and catch her breath. Hmm.
And the rain is coming. Oh I know you are pleased. Every single screwed up , scrunchy, eeky, parched, bad tempered particle on the farmy was desperate for a good wetting.
I know they are excited on the inside. Later ofter the rain, I let this group out of the hen house, and they threw themselves at all the new green shoots rummaging fast in the dusk. You really can see the grass grow at this time of year. It is exhilarating. 
So the rain came in, thunder crashed and lightening flew about our ears, the dogs all hit the deck and crab scuttled for the basement. The cats appeared like Cheshires on the verandah railings. And so it rained. The Carpenter and his Lady went home and the large gathering of teenagers (evidently sullen teenage 18 year olds are magnets for bright laughing girls and their brothers, who knew!), stood in silence and watched the short but good downpour, munching on crostini, cheese and dill pickles from last summer. Sullen is lifting by the way.
When the wind and the rain hit, Mama waddled reluctantly into the barn to wait. Then turned around and was back out the moment the birds began to sing the concluding bars of the storm. But we are not watching Mama today. I have a new idea, we will accept her delicate condition and allow her to blend! 
From now on no-one can watch Mama unless it is out of the corner of their eye! We need to stop the longing for little lambys for the farmy. And focus on other things. 
Like sage for instance. Sage is good. All the seedlings are outside and growing. The work is heavy at the moment, preparing and planting all the beds. I still have not finished clearing all the flower beds. Then we will plant all the new bee flowers into the gaps. The Carpenter’s Lady is coming back this morning to help me plant the potatoes (my blue potatoes have arrived), she is bringing her teenager! See above!!
The Sheep Sitter who I am calling Mama’s Midwife (she has insisted I call her to help when Mama starts dropping lambs, she grew up on a farm and is a delightfully strong sensible older lady), she will drop in today too. We have a plan we are working on. She volunteers at the local Food Pantry and said that a lot of the perishable food gets thrown away, the pantry is only open once a week, so we are going to throw the leftovers to the pigs instead of in the rubbish and grow a pig for the food pantry. That way the food is not wasted and the food pantry waste loop is closed.
The farmy is working its magic. The people are coming. The animals call them I think.
The Old Codger is good but missing the blog and knowing what is going on, why can’t they have computers for the old folks in these homes? I need to work on this. These people can become too isolated. So I pinned the whole collection of farmy postcards on the wee notice board in his room to tide him over. They are so colourful and bright. He was pleased.
TonTon was the very calm this time. He gently loped through the halls. No darting looks, no anxiousness. He just wandered into the Old Codgers room, licked his hands, wriggled for more cuddles and then threw himself at the old man’s feet, sighed, and went straight to sleep.
Good morning!
celi
ps, I just realised that I forgot to do my Saturday introduction page of interesting new blogs. How could I forget that. Next week I shall get back into the groove. OK.. Time I got to work!
The Kitchen's Garden 
91 responses to “It rained and it was a good rain”
Ahhh, lovely rain…Glad to see you are working your magic on the teenagers, just as I knew you would! I am writing this from sunny Florida where Bill and I are taking 10 days for ourselves before the Big Time begins. It is lovely here. I love your idea of doing a pig for the food pantry. And I cannot believe that the home does not have even one computer for those folks…Waiting on tenterhooks for Mama and sending good vibes…
Have a lovely break, what a good idea! c
We had a good rain here, washed the pollen off the cars! Wonderful photos as always.
isn’t rain just grand! c
Not looking at Mama… not looking…
So wonderful to have your photos as an equally tempting view.. I love that landscape with rain clouds thundering in.. Loved your cheshire cat analogy.. And am a huge fan of Magnolias so I understand your bee’s passion:) I am so particularly impressed that you are raising a pig for the food shelter now..
i cannot wait to get the pigs, the pig pen is not even built but i have a feeling if i actually get the pigs maybe someone will put it together !!
What a fantastic picture of the chooks! I am jealous of your rain, we need it so badly and keep getting just a tease of clouds. I, too, was walking about admiring the Spring blossoms…such a beautiful time of year and that’s quite a crop of pretty sage you have there. Happy Saturday!
The sage will be wonderful, i am planting it into the deep border in all the wee gaps .. actually if you saw my gardens betsy you would raise your eyebrows and say what gaps, but it is my secret weapon against weeds.. overplanting!!! c
Good morning, Celi. It’s raining here as well (Yay!) — not a big storm, but still rain. Perhaps this way it will have time to soak in. That is a lovely picture of the chooks. What a good idea to raise a pig for the food pantry on food pantry scraps.
The irony is not escaping me sharyn!! c
Lovely pictures! The first one made me miss our cherry tree, which had to go down last year before it started falling on people. Have to put up an old picture of it in the next weeks.
That is a good idea, putting a pic of your old tree up, those weeping cherries are such a joy.. c
Great chicken picture!
I might relook at that one and maybe make it into a postcard! c
Love the ominous image of the sky C. Have a great relaxing weekend!
OK i wil garden, that is ralaxing.. c
🙂
I have it on good authority that the Old Codger was pleased with the rain and the postcards both.
PS Please put me down for a couple packs! Also, I will soon be sending OC a “Squirrel” T-Shirt, because he loves squirrels.
awesome!! c
Hi nancy,I think the postcards brightened his room, if he is there much longer i am going to bring a few more pics for the walls, there are empty hooks, and you know how I feel about an empty space on a wall!! c
Wonderful! “Sometime in May” is the official word. I put in a request for “mid-May”
Oh Dog! A sheep midwife! How cool is that! Sorry the Old Codger doesn’t have Internet. It sounds so unfair.
I don’t think anyone has thought that some of these oldies have been using computers too, for years! So i am going to talk to the people and see what is what. c
Terrific sky, it’s so BIG and such bonnie hens!
Christine
Morning Christine, yes the sky is amazing, no hills or mountains or buildings in the way.. c
The farmyy is working its magic…it is indeed! Such a shame the old folk can´t have internet access 😦 and maybe Mama will go into labour after the change in weather. We had rain last night for the first time in ages and chicks not due until tomorrow or Monday started hatching out today! God I love spring 🙂
The sage looks lovely. I was amused by the this post’s title as I usually think of rain as a *bad* thing as we see so much of it here in Ireland. But of course I should remember that sometimes the ground is crying out for it.
I have a feeling the minute we stop “monitoring” Mama, she’ll drop the lambys! =D
I wonder how many ewes have had people around the globe focusing on their delivery. I like the idea of letting Mama be – do you think there are three or four? One black one? Oh…never mind, Celi! I’m crowding her energy field.
While on retreat at a monastery in Santa Barbara, I had permission to go to the garden each morning & pluck a few leaves of sage. I’d rub them all over my face and hands. The scent accompanied me for hours. I think it was Cleveland Sage and I’ve not found another sage leave that comes close to that exquisite aroma!