Shepherd Girl

Shepherd GIRL

 

 

That day will forever be etched in my memory. One second it was hot like fire, and the next the skies broke loose, making way for heavy rain to burst out of clouds that could no longer carry it. Like a mighty army, the rain approached the earth. Determined. Incapable of being stopped.

It fell with purpose. Wiping out suffocating heat. Cooling bodies filled with sweat. Resuscitating discolored blades of grass that drooped sideways, almost dead from days of lack. Bringing winds of refreshing to our sheep.

That day, after we’d put the sheep back in their shelter, we ran straight for the back door of the house. With clothes dripping wet, we sat in front of the kitchen window watching hard drops of rain hit brown soil, wilted grass, and those thirsty plants littered around the sheep shelter.

That same day, my mother looked into my eyes and said, “Nina, see how the rain falls?”

“Yes, mother,” I answered, half-wondering where she was going with this.

“Nina, your heart should be like rain,” she muttered. “One hundred percent in. One direction. One goal.”

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Dear Unpredictable Heart | Why Moody Feelings Don’t Affect the Big Picture

The other day, I found myself astonished as my bubbly, handsome 1-year old giggled uncontrollably at the silliness of my erratic mood switch, completely oblivious to the passage of time and how mummy was flipping over because he wouldn’t stay still long enough to change his diaper.

He wanted to keep playing. I wanted to stop.

He wanted to keep giggling and kicking. I wanted a smooth sail — to be efficient and done quickly.

It should only take a few minutes to change him, right? Surely, this was no David and Goliath war. There were no weapons of warfare. No stones to throw. No armor. No shield.

Just I and my little baby boy alone in that room.

Come on, this can’t be hard, I thought. Sing his favorite song, wipe quickly, and finish up nicely.

Apparently, someone else had different plans. Baby boy was having none of that.

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