Reap What Ye Sow(ed)

As you (few) who look to this blog occationally, thinking that by some miracle, or incessant nagging, a new post might have appeared in this space...TA-DAH! Here it is! apologies for the long span between posts, I really have no excuse.
In truth, it has been so long since my first post, I had actually forgotten how to get back to my own blog, and had trouble figuring out how to post a new entry. All this was in addition to the writer's block I was suffering. I know I claimed that I would record the mundane as well as the miraculous here, but even I was bored with the subject matter available to me.
Actually, there have been a few miracles - we managed to plant, maintain, and harvest a decent crop of corn and soybeans...No, that's not the miracle...the miracle is that grain prices are higher at harvest time than they have been all the rest of this year! There is no explaining it in human terms, so it is a miracle, I guess. These prices do not mean we will be solvent - just that we will be able to farm another year - whoopee!
Of course, there were a few other happenings of note over the summer and autumn here on the farm. We had a copious amount of rain which was good and bad for our hay crop - it grew like crazy, but there were never 5 days in a row without rain during which we could cut, dry, rake, and bale the wonderful crop. In fact, we only made two cuttings (normally, we take three) and ended up with more hay than we ever had in one season!
Speaking of hay, we had a strange happening concerning one of those creatures who devour our hay - at an alarming rate, I might add! A neighbor driving by our pasture noticed a heifer who looked as if she might be calving. Cows will generally wander away from the rest of the herd to do this, but ours invariably choose a spot where all the neighbors can witness the fun. Our neighbor was kind enough to let us know about the heifer's difficulties and I rode the ATV out to check on her.
Yes, the calf was coming, but was "stuck" about half-way out. In fact, I was pretty sure the calf was already dead, it's tongue out and eyes glazed. But the calf had to come out. All I had with me was a small 3-foot strap, which I looped around the calf's front legs and then pulled. Sometimes, if you're very lucky, the cow will be laboring hard enough that she will stay down and let you assist her - almost as if she appreciated your help. Well, not this cow! In fairness, this was the first birth for this heifer, so she couldn't be expected to cooperate as fully as a more experienced cow.
Anyway, when the heifer got up, I lost my hold on the strap (and the calf) and thought I had a much more complex situation to deal with now - coaxing the agitated animal up into our barn, corralling her into the chute, applying the mechanical calf-puller, etc. But instead, this heifer was annoyed at the "projection" coming out of her backside and proceeded to turn in circles, around and around, much like a dog chasing its own tail.
As I stood there with my mouth agape, she made five or six revolutions and finally, with the aid of centrifugal force, succeeded in dropping her calf. And perhaps it was the unusual delivery, but the calf was revived ( obviously, my first assessment was faulty) and within the hour was standing next to her goofy mother, nursing and enjoying her mother's attentions (i.e. licking). How's that for miraculous?