I’m at that cross roads when the decision needs to be made on what to sink my upcoming months into and start writing. As Eddie Snipes, author of I Called Him Dancer said, the goal isn’t to get published. The goal is the journey. (Reflections in Hindsight, April Gardner)
Life in the Dales is an elixer which tempts me. Farming in the Dales is not for the faint-hearted. The hours are long, the weather is often beastly, the animals stubborn. Days can pass by without seeing another person.
Don, the farmer’s Border Collie, has become a dear friend of mine. Maybe around 9-years old, Don lives in a barn near our cottage. When he’s not out with the farmer herding sheep, he’s tied in the barn. I’ve accepted the responsibility of feeding him. Not accustomed to strangers, it took awhile for Don and me to become friends. Gradually I noticed his tail beginning to wag whenever I entered the barn. Now he enjoys my petting him, particularly rubbing his ears. With our children in the U.S., Don and Shamrock (our city-bred Border Collie,) hold a very special place in my heart.
The other day when I entered the barn, I found another farmer and a herd of sheep. Simon was inoculating the sheep for the season. He and I talked a bit, and I learned that he used to train Border Collies for herding.
This setting is ripe for story creation.
