i really like my kids

this past week has been full of slaughter.

on monday, it was two pigs that maya (our ten year old daughter) has fed and watered every day since december. each morning she walked through the mud, or snow, or grass. scooped some feed out of the galvanized steel trash can and threw it over the door of the thriftbare pig pen we call “pigga palace” in honor of a nearby pizza place.

then she’d walk back through the snow/mud/grass and fill up a green five gallon bucket with water; turn back and walk back to the pen, climb over the bottom portion of the door and get in the muck with the pigs to fill up the water trough. then climb back out, close the top of the door, walk back with the empty green bucket and place it next to the rain barrel for tomorrow’s chores.

over the months, all of maya’s walking back and forth has created a narrow strip of land.

indeed, the things we do each day make an impression.

on slaughter days, i usually dress up.

this time it was a relatively clean pair of jeans, and a favorite blue-checkered button-down flanel. checked the .22 to see it was loaded and walked out the front door to fire a test shot. we were good to go.

the reason for the nice clothes is respect. and celebration. our family has successfully raised these animals for months. kept them safe from predators. purchased feed, hauled water, added bale after bale of straw. these days are a big deal. this is probably a year’s worth of meat.

it was an unusually cool day for july, and the grass was getting long so i followed the wellworn path maya had forged. full of calm as i walked with the long gun pointed to the ground, i was startled when maya stuck her head out of a window and shouted “blow the pigs’ heads off” as i walked by. i chuckled and felt like a beauty queen in a small town parade.

people often mistakenly assume that kids are squeamish or scared of animal slaughter. i can assure you, they are not. our species have survived the uncountable millenia because we are hard-wired to eat animals. and not just eat them, but kill, disembowel, halve, quarter and skin them.

we hired our friend sean to come by and guide us through the day. pigs have a brain the size of a golf ball and we were using a small bullet from a not-very-powerful gun which meant an accurate shot was crucial. i pointed to a tuft of hair between the ears of one of the pigs and sean nodded. at this point of the kill, my thoughts always go to brandon sheard of farmstead meatsmith who preaches patience.

so my (his) method involves taking the time to find the perfect shot and consciously not pulling the trigger, but letting this perfect shot go by just to prove to myself that there is no hurry, that i am in charge of the situation. and then, it is on the second perfect shot opportunity the trigger is pulled.

friday it was three rabbits.

abraham (our twelve year old son), maya, and i, drove a few hours east and north to buy the only “organically” raised rabbits we could find on craigslist, way up in maine. it was towards the end of winter, probably in late february/early march. since then, abe has fed and watered the rabbits each day, and this spring the three of us have spread their miraculous urine and poop on strawberry patches, grapevines, onions, potatoes, fruit trees and zucchini plants, to name a few. we call it miraculous because it has literally transformed dozens of dying plants into lush green succulent healthy beings.

being this was our first rabbit slaughter, i was a bit concerned that the “cuteness” of the animal might make things hard. to prep, abraham watched a few really good videos on the subject and emailed the family. the four of us setup a table, some twine with slipknots, a “broomstick”, some food grade bus tubs and a few recently honed knives.

we shared gratitude for the animals before the dispatching, and by god’s grace everything went remarkably well. susan (my wife) who is naturally gifted at breaking down animals, took the lead in the skinning and gutting. both kids got really excited about the hides. they followed along a video of the first steps towards preparing the beautiful fur to become hats or mittens.

we spent hours together, often in silence, doing our various jobs turning these precious animals into food and clothing for our family.

anyhoos, this is all a relatively long-winded way of saying that tonight, while editing the second part of this portrait of mark, i was really moved during the section when he talked about how much he loved his kids. about how he is so grateful to homeschool them, and to get to spend extra time with them because of how wonderful they are. and i was like “yeah, totally. i feel the exact same way”.