You are the man.
The drive, the force, the strength.
I am the woman.
The receptacle, the pliable, the resilient.
You are mine
in the way that I am yours.
We blend
magnificently.
What I am complements what you are.
What you need, I seek to supply.
What I need, you supply.
We feed each other
in a daily dance of respect and honor.
You lead me to the great I Am.
I lead you to the well.
We share, each other.
We share, worship.
We share, sacrament.
We share.
At my home here in Panama, I raise livestock. I have chickens for eggs and meat, rabbits for meat and sheep for meat and cash. Livestock, while still lovable and entertaining, are not pets. I name the breeders: the moms and dad who are the foundation. Their offspring I do not name, because they are for the table. That moms, plural, is not a typo. There is a single dad. There are multiple moms. I am running an Islamic animal society: multiple wives. Lots of women is desirable, but you only need one man. The rest of the men you EAT. For DINNER. With sauce, spices, and HERBS.
If you are an animal man, life is either short and sweet, or long and satisfying (but only if you are a very lucky and EXCEPTIONALLY handsome man who is gentle with your wives). Most animal men end up with a life that is short and sweet, since one male is sufficient for the needs of the livestock owner´s multiple females. Since one male is enough and feed costs are an issue, most males are extra, and end up as dinner after a short time. You do need to change him out (trade him to another farmer) every other year or so, so he does not breed his own daughters (yuck).
The ladies, however, live long and productive lives. The only ones of THEM you eat are the ones who don´t make good mommies. If you are a girl, your chances of a long life are pretty good. You don´t, however, usually get to choose your spouse. It does not appear to bother them a whole lot. They don´t seem to mind. It is pretty much the same situation in the wild, except there, it is the bully who gets to be the husband to all the available ladies. At least I choose a husband who is gentle.
April 30, Linda gave birth to twin lambs. The herd is growing! The chickens are getting their own outdoor pen soon, and the rabbits need another lady bunny to be a wife to the second male breeder bunny.
So far, the livestock has pretty much been all cost and no benefit, but that is normal whenever you start raising animals. The youngsters have to grow up and mature enough to reproduce before you begin to see returns on your investment. Since I have been in Panama only a few months, I am not there yet. SOON!!
Azrou, the little Moroccan town where we live, borders a Moroccan National forest. This forest is home to Barbary Macaques, a type of baboon-ish monkey. There is a picnic area in the forest that is a popular spot for the people of both Azrou and Ifrane, another University town 10 kilometers further up the
Young male
mountain. People go there not to picnic, because that is frankly not possible. They go there to feed the monkeys. This practice is actually not encouraged by the park rangers, since these monkeys are powerfully strong, especially the males. In addition, they have canine teeth (otherwise known as FANGS) that are more than two inches long. You do NOT want to make one of these bad boys angry.
Mother and child
Most people have the sense not to tease them or chase them, but not everyone is intelligent (something I am sure that you already knew) and I have seen people chased by monkeys who are not stupid, and who recognize that someone is being mean. Messing with a baby monkey is the fastest way to be chased. Plus, the monkeys are accustomed to being fed, so they have learned that a plastic bag (a mika) has treats in it. If you are slow in dishing them out, an enterprising monkey will sneak up on you and snatch the bag from you. This can be quite frightening. We had one steal a sandwich bag from an open car door. Then the little thief climbed a tree and ate the sandwich with every evidence of pleasure, doling out tasty (and stingy) tidbits to other monkey beggars. They are quite entertaining to watch, and are mostly surprisingly gentle when accepting treats, including cups of water.
Mature male
However – everybody keeps a close watch out for the big males. When one of them approaches, all others scatter. They are rather intimidating, because they are fairly large. If you see one yawn, displaying those formidable teeth, they become even more intimidating. And, it is apparent that all the other monkeys regard them with the utmost respect, because they vacate the premises whenever one of these big boys shows interest. I have not seen anyone stupid enough to tease one of them, but I am sure there are people that dumb. I teach school, and I have no illusions regarding the relative intelligence (or lack thereof) of the human species. Some of us make some of them look like geniuses. No kidding.
Monkeys like fruit, cookies, bread and peanuts. There are a few vendors at the park who sell packages of peanuts to feed the monkeys, but I like peanuts, too. I had a hard time getting any for me! Also at the park are some men who own horses, and they are decked out in richly embroidered bridles and saddles. You can get a picture, or a short ride, for not too much cash. There are also a couple of shops that sell stone jewelry and fossils, which Morocco is also pretty famous for. The chief attraction, however, has to be the monkeys!
Dirtdaubber Wasp 