I was sitting in my sh’shed busy stabbing away at a sheeple this afternoon when I looked up and saw that the fading afternoon light was utterly beautiful.

So I left the four legs and a torso, grabbed my camera, wellies and went out.

I was feeling thankful for 2021. For me, it has been an emtionally hard year in so many ways (Mum, BeAnne) but I knew deep down that was beyond my control.   So no surprises and I got through it. I am thankful for that.  It was difficult.

However, Haakon remains a mainstay in my life.  Ok, I don’t ride him but that is irrelevant. He is my boy. He always will be.  He is around.

As Floss just said (as she passed me writing the blog at the kitchen table, drinking gin, eating plain crisps and watching Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (great film)), “he is wonderful – a good boy who went off to eat rather than wait for hay!”.

Waiting for hay shows just how easy we are! The rest were waiting for hay. Ok, read Iacs.

…. and he told told his friends – Sóley and Lilja.

So, then with my big camera and perfect winter light, my attention was turned to Lilja who really is a lovely lady and I know I must find her a new home.  The right home. Not just any home.

She is lightly backed and such a sweetheart.

And she looks very like her dad.

Life moves on. I know that. I can change what I can change. I can try my hardest but life will keep going with or without me.  (apologies: I seem to have gone all philosphical).

My life is now officially chaos.

And I think I have found my family crest!

I also have no nice furniture or furnishings.  All destroyed.

And then I said “Enough, stop!”

And they had a little chat about this.

I said “Pepper, are you being as nice as you know how?”
And she replied “mebbe!” (that is such a Miss Pepper look).

St Monster – sainthood pending.

Ted – looking a bit chewed, but happy.

As I said, my life is chaos.

I know I said that everyone could stay where they are until they lost weight….

But today I gave in.  I couldn’t bear it any longer. By “it”, I mean the pitiful looks of utter misery.

And they were all very glad when I said I would open the gate.

No one needed asking twice.

All eight cantered off happily into the longer grass, which has hopefully absolutely no calories or sugar.

Lots of bouncing, giggling and farting!

Eventually, having explored sufficiently, they got down the serious work of eating.

I had a word with Tiddles and said I would be keeping a close eye on him and one hint of laminitis and he would be back home….

Along with Silver….

…. and Newt for company (they are fatties too).

Tiddles said he would try not to eat his weight in grass on the first day!

It was lovely to watch them all, though.

Everyone happy.

I left them to it.

Every time I am outside, Maggie looks for me and comes running over.  For a hill sheep she is very tame and this makes me remember that this time last year there was one sad black ewe who stayed around our gate asking me to let her in.

How did she know I would? Why did she want to live here?  She had made a decision and stuck to it while the rest of her hill flock wandered away. Every time I went outside there would be a small thin black sheep waiting for me on the other side of the fence.

Ok, Maggie likes food but she genuinely likes people.

At the moment, I spend far too much time thinking this-time-last-year and trying to remember how my life has been enriched by my rescue animals.

For a hill sheep (notoriously wild and unhelpful), Maggie is very tame and knows her mind.

This is Maggie (and Harrel’s) time in my thoughts.  They are my constant reminder of the “this time last year’s” plus the crappy sheepy politics that went with it (’nuff said but we won).

This time last year, I didn’t know Maggie and Harrel-the-Barrel.

They have enriched my life and I am grateful for them for doing this.  A reminder to always help when no one else will.

Thank you everyone for all your input. Lots of useful links and possibilities.

A friend sent this link to a squirrel wax seal ring that has been commercially reproduced and looks remarkably similar.

From the website:-

“Handcrafted using the impression of a mid-1800’s British wax seal. This whimsical ring features a squirrel with the text framing him reading ‘Ever Gay’.

Squirrels are emblematic of one who may plan for the future, but is unafraid to take advantage of the moment and willing to seize the day.”

So then OH and spent the afternoon trying to see if there were actually three letters near the squirrel rather than acorns and also if there may have been any writing around the other side too that has been worn away.

I think not. and we made a bad job of it using a different method – a teaspoon-with-wax-pellets-on-the-gas-hob. The mince-pie holder produced a better quality of wax to work with. Anywho, I will email the company with the ring to ask if they know anything about the original seal.

Meanwhile, I will keep researching and looking for information.