Ripples

Sometimes I am amazed by the ripples that one’s actions make in other people’s lives. Our nephew Jared and his partner Ariella came up to help with lambing and sugarbush. We had a wonderful weekend and didn’t accomplish  nearly what we expected – turned out lambing and sugarbush absorbed all our time. Ariella wrote about their weekend in her blog , http://ariellaapproach.com/life-death-business/. She had found insights in our lives that we hadn’t noticed, even after thirty years of working at the job (or perhaps because we’ve been doing it for thirty years.) 

Then I heard from Sarah, a second cousin from whom I’ve never had an email before. She had heard about our interview with Minnesota Public Radio from my cousin Diane who lives in England. I figured that Diane must be friends with someone in our family on Facebook.

This morning, I heard from my cousin Diane.

 “Hi,” she wrote, “you will not believe it but a voice clip and some photos appeared on  TV  here(probably all over Britain) of YOU and DAVE and your little lambs....apparently the spring lambing in "cold and dark" Minnesota with you and Dave is a special story, probably because of the stars… But I perked up and knew it was you when I heard the narrator speak of an organic farm in Pequot Lakes MN managed by a woman who weaves the wool of her sheep !....that could only be Joanie I thought.

“ So now your story is global...how fun...congratulations….   Hope you and Dave are well.....the farm looks good but the stars were really those sweet little lambs...I loved it .

Your cousin, Diane”

The only thing lost in translation between here and England was the location of the farm (Pelican Rapids rather than Pequot Lakes) and the fact that I’m more apt to be knitting  the wool from my sheep  than weaving.  

I wonder how far ripples actually go.