Farm Fresh

       In Oysterville we are at the ready for the official arrival of Spring on Sunday.  Yesterday, Bambi and his mother explored the churchyard; the elk came into town, once more; daffodils are in profusion along the fencerows; and egg production is up!  Now, if only the weather would gentle a bit, we could wish winter a firm farewell.
     Already I have forgotten whether March came in like the proverbial lion.  I do seem to remember that Punxsutawney Phil failed to see his famous shadow on Groundhog Day this past February 2^nd. That was supposed to mean an early spring, rather than six more weeks of winter.  By counting the squares on my calendar, that means today is the day!!  We can but hope…
     Meanwhile, when the elk made their return trip into Oysterville yesterday, they paused for an hour or so in our lower meadow, about fifty feet from our back fence.  Our chicken coop is near that fence and, though I doubt very much if the chickens could see the great beasts, even though they were  just yards away from them,  the girls certainly were aware of something going on.  They clucked and cackled and carried on magnificently – a full Elk Alert!  The elk were oblivious.
     By the end of the day, the girls had only managed to give us three eggs – unusual for this time of year.  For several weeks now, we have been collecting five or six eggs a day.  We can only conclude that the elk spooked them enough to adversely affect production.  We hope it was only a one-day slow-down.
     As for March going out like a lamb…  I make no prediction.  Here in Oysterville, our experience with lambs – real or apocryphal – is limited.