The Drought Takes Its Toll

    The effects of the drought here in the midwest are taking a toll in many visible as well as invisible ways. The brown grass and large cracks in the earth are tell tale signs of distress on our land. Our horses have been eating hay since the last week of July, something we normally don't put out until late November. The winter hay supply is hard to come by and when you find some it is very expensive. The pastures have been grazed down so low that they are virtually dirt. We have taken them off the summer pastures and decided to instead sacrifice our alternate pasture in hopes we will have some pasture come back next spring.

Drought Drying Up the Ponds

     The effects of the drought on hay production and pasture are one of the most visible effects of the lack of rain in this area. However, the effects have a ripple effect. The grass is burnt, it crunches when you walk on it. The trees, whose leaves are brown, are already dropping their leaves. Much of our burnt fields and overgrazed  pastures will need to be reseeded but the fear is that the seed will be just as scarce as the hay. The water sources are receding.

     Less obvious effects
 are starting to rear their ugly heads from the large amount dust. Without rain the grass is losing its structure adding to the already large amounts of dust normally generated by road traffic but now generated in the fields and pastures. This dust has increased incidents of respiratory problems in the animals that live outdoors in it. Not only from the dust and molds in the hay bales but also from the dust stirred up in their living environment. Our mare, Jazz, has been diagnosed with COPD exasperated by the dusty conditions. Chronic Obstructive Pulminary Disease is a condition that can cause her to have difficulty exhaling and causes heaving. She is now at the barn in our as free from dust environment we can generate and being fed soaked hay to keep down on dusts and mold that she would otherwise inhale.

    The drought can take a toll on a person spiritually, too. At times you feel worn out and wonder why is God withholding the much needed rains on the land he blessed and shared with us to manage. In your mind you know that God has a plan to prosper and not harm even the land and the horses, but your heart can feel like it is as desolate as the pastures you walk in.

    Just like Jazz's respiritory degeneration, I didn't see it coming. But I was reminded last night at a prayer meeting how much God loves me. How did I forget that? The effects of drought on your soul slowly begin to show signs of degeneration in your spirit until one day you realize how far gone you are. But God is amazing. He loves us and has given us everything we need to survive. Just as he gave me the contacts I needed to acquire additional hay for my horses in a time when farmers are selling their cattle because they can't feed them, he provides everything we need to survive even in a drought.

     God loves me and that is all I ever needed.

   

"As a father loves and pities his children, so He loves and pities those who fear Him (with reverence, worship, and awe.)" Psalm 103:13