Green Pastures

Goat herding is much different than I ever imagined.

I had this romantic picture of walking out with your nice herd of goats to a place of ‘green pastures’ and then sitting in the shade while watching the little white goats eat their fill.

It took a whole day of shadowing two little shepherd girls to learn what it’s really like!

Did you know that it is possible, in a period of 12 hrs, to drink over 6 liters of water and not have to go even once!? It is.

We left at 7am following our herd of pretty white goats. We went with two little girls (grade 5) – I think they were tickled that the mzungus wanted to spend all day with them. Throughout the day they were very concerned that we would be thirsty, hungry, tired, hot and so on… it is odd to be ‘taken care of’ by little girls.

The goats never stop. They walk and eat dead sticks as they go. It is a day of constant moving over an old lava field of rocks. Some times you get a chance to sit in the shade, but often you are in the direct sun sitting briefly and then moving after your goats. If you look around you there is no ‘grazing’ to be seen, but if you look more carefully there are small bits of life that the goats find to eat and by a miracle of God they survive! Not only is it amazing that the goats find anything to eat, but its is amazing that these little children can herd these goats everyday – children as young as 4yr out all day with little more than a liter of water!

Do you know ANYONE at home who would send their child out all day to wander about the desert?

It was quite an experience let me tell you! We got back at 7pm and I was quite ready for bed. I drank a whole other liter when we got back to the house!

This is my favorite part of the day... taking the goats to 'burka' (spring) and resting in the cool shade as the goats drink and rest. But it was a short rest and off we went onto the rocks again.
We didn't have a camera while we herded the goats, but this pic is taken in the area that the goat herds go... rocks, rocks and more rocks.
This is when it was 'green' because of recent rains... but it is only green comparitively.