fireman or mechanic?

You know what, I hate to even say it out loud, but here goes. Things at the farm have been profoundly calm and serene. All of the animals seem very happy and very healthy and everything seem to be in order. Is it strange that I don't trust it? That in the back of my mind I am so expecting the freak ice storm of November? The goats are all bred the ewes are bred and the chickens are laying like crazy, and the coyote has seemed to have left us alone for the time being. There is peace.

Many many many, years ago when I worked as a corporate executive chef in a very large chain of Italian restaurants in Seattle the chef who trained me told me this " you always want to be a mechanic just keeping all the parts moving, you never want to be a fireman". That was the best advise I could have ever received. Really he was just talking about being organized and proactive. I took his advise and for years I was a mechanic and had very little fires. But now with 6 years of farming under my belt I realize I've been moving from one fire to the next trying desperately to keep things under control. is this what farming is all about? I refuse to think so.

In my mind what I'm experiencing right now is how it should be. Last year couldn't have been more different. Even though we need rain desperately I am really appreciating this reprieve from the seasons before. This weather has been a break. And when I woke up this morning to 50 degrees I thought to my self; be the mechanic, make sure all the parts are in working order. You know what most likely lie ahead, get ready. This is a perfect opportunity to avoid some fires.

I hate to spend this beautiful calm time on being worried about what might come, expecting fires to erupt at any moment so I've got to work on ways to change how I am looking at things. I've got to get out of my tracts here and change rolls. I've got to do it now, not mid fire that just doesn't work. So I'll be enjoying this time, taking walks spending a lot of time with the animals and preparing for the possible weather ahead. Completely grateful that nature has given me this break and a moment to look at things in a new light.