Lacoochee kid

This past Monday, my friend Bettie took me to visit her cousin and his wife down in Raphine.  I had been wanting to go there so much, and I finally had the chance.  Pat and Suzy have a sheep farm.  When we arrived, my breath was taken away by the beauty of the rolling hills, their big old farm house, her clothesline with the wash hung out, and the sheep.

It was so much fun to watch the babies running to their mamas when they heard their bleats.  After walking around some, we sat out on the porch overlooking the meadow where the sheep were, and it was just so peaceful.  I told Suzy that if I lived there, I'd probably never leave.

After a while, we went in, had a little dessert, and then went out to the barn where there were some orphan lambs being held in a pen and being bottle fed and getting other food until they're ready to go out into the field.  As we walk out toward the barn, and the sheep heard Suzy's voice, they began to call for her.  They knew their mama was coming!

We stopped and looked at the babies for a while, but there was still one little lamb crying for Suzy.  That baby was in another section.  Suzy went over and picked him up and brought him for us to see.  What a cutie!

While we were sitting on the porch, enjoying the gentle breeze and taking in all the sights and sounds around us, I could not help think of young David, as he took care of the sheep.  Probably the most familiar Psalm is his, Psalm 23...The Lord is my shepherd.  I shall not want.   Beautiful choral music has been written with this psalm as the theme.  Choruses has been written using the same theme.

Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd."  He said, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.  And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.:

I don't want to call myself a "snowbird" since I am a native Floridian, but I guess in reality I have become one.  I can certainly understand why people flee the frozen north for the wonderful winter weather in Florida.  Blue skies, gentle breezes, and mild temperatures are great.  The beginning of spring training season is in the air.  Games will be beginning on the 23rd of the month. 

I have been enjoying seeing old friends and making some new ones.  I have been attending the church that I attended from the time I was four.  There have been lots of changes  over the years, but one thing has remained constant.  The church is very mission minded for fields overseas and right in the neighborhood.  A young pastor has taken the reins, and he is loved by all.

Today after I took all my tax stuff to my accountant, I drove out to DeSoto Memorial and walked around.  I wandered over to where a couple was seated, and the gentleman struck up a conversation.  They invited me to sit down on the bench with them.  As we talked, he told me that he had moved to Bradenton in 1980 and had a cabinet business.  He then went on to say that he was a one-man business.  I started asking him if he knew certain people.  He did.  Then I asked him if he knew Don Whitcomb.  Don was a one-man business, as well.  He did, indeed, know Don.  We spent quite a bit of time talking about different customers that they both had had over the years.  I must say that made my day.