The Shepherdess Parable

I wrote the first draft of this last September.


Once upon a time there was a shepherdess who inherited seven sheep. At first she was excited about this.
"This is just a beginning," she told her neighbors, "my flock will grow very large and I will be so proud of my many, many sheep."
The first year passed and two of the seven sheep, who were quite old when she first took possession of them, died. Another had an accident and went lame. But three new sheep joined the flock and the shepherdess was content. She still dreamed of having the largest flock in her village.
The shepherdess was especially fond of her strong, obedient sheep. There seemed to be always about four of those. The weak or lost sheep she found annoying and unworthy and when they wandered off she was not upset.
A few more years went by and the number hovered still around seven. No new lambs were born since her sheep were older and past their lambing days. More of the older ones died and any new weak, lazy or shabby ones would wander off looking for someone to love and help them.
When ten years went by the shepherdess became distraught that her dream of a large flock was not being realized.
"What can be wrong?" she asked herself. Being a godly woman, she prayed to the Great Shepherd asking for more sheep to be added to her flock but through the years, the number continued to hover right around seven.
The shepherdess was growing older herself and was becoming discouraged.
One night as she lay down to sleep, she implored the Great Shepherd to tell her why she still only had seven when she wanted seventy. And thus she fell asleep.
In her dream she saw the seventy sheep she had felt should be hers. When they walked past her she looked at each one and realized that she already knew most of them, they were the weak and lost sheep that she had not given her attention to; had not been sorry to see drift away. Then she heard an angel-voice saying, "Every single sheep was sent by the Great Shepherd, just as you asked. You and your strong, wise sheep were meant to care for those you judged weak and unworthy. Go now and gather up the needy and show them the path to strength and wisdom."
When the shepherdess awoke she understood what her gift was and she spent her remaining years looking for the ones who needed her.

Remember Where You Are

When my grandson A.J. was 2 years old, I was in the habit of entertaining him with animal sounds. I think it started with a book he liked me to read to him about a character who was good at animal sounds but couldn't speak. Anyway, I worked at Arizona AAA back then (1991). His mom, Wendy, called me at work because A.J. wanted to talk to 'Amah'. That's what he still calls me (he's 20 now). A.J. indicated he would like me to make some animal sounds and being 'in the moment' I started right in. I did my wooh, wooh, wooh for a chimpanzee. Then I did my personal favorite, the crow: Aaaa, Aaaa, Aaaa. This is one I had practised in the great outdoors and it was LOUD!

My boss, a tolerant fellow, came out of his office across the room as if shot by a cannon, saying, "What the hell was that?"

I stood up and wide grinned him. He came over to me, eyebrows aloft, and merely said, "Please try to remember where you are, Carol."

Darwin Award: Convince the Jury

This Darwin story is in honor of my own week of court-related events.
First I had to go into our local Cochise County Courthouse for jury selection on Monday. We were asked to be there by 12:30PM and there were a whole passel of us. We waited and waited. We were put in the kitchen to watch an orientation film. By the 4th time around we were able recite the dialogue by heart. The clerk came and relieved us of another repetition by putting the equipment back to television broadcast. Before I could expel my sigh of relief, however, I realized that she had put on Fox News, so my sigh turned to a groan. Luckily, I had a good book with me (Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie) and was able to tune out most of what was being said on the news program. The only thing I gave my attention to was a story about a 14 year-old boy who was getting national attention as a chef.
Anyway, it turned out that the judge had been delayed in Tucson and we didn't get into the courtroom to begin jury selecton until after 3PM. At last we emerged from the on-hold pattern of bored waiting. Once the proceedings started, I must say, I was favorably impressed by the staff of the court, especially, but not exclusively, the judge himself , the honorable Wallace R. Hoggatt. I was actually sorry that I wouldn't get to be on a jury in his courtroom, just for the experience. And as it turned out he excused me so that I could go to Tucson with Sharon for Wendy's Guardianship of A.J. on Thursday, the 25th.

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June 16, 1871


During the Civil War, Clement Vallandigham was convicted of treason for his speeches attacking the administration of President Abraham Lincoln. He was banished to the South, where, still voicing his opinion for states' rights, he became a lawyer.



His last appearance in the courtroom he represented a client on trial for murder. The defense claimed that the victim's method of drawing his own gun resulting in it firing and killing himself.



To prove the defense argument, Vallandigham demonstrated the victim's method of drawing the gun - using the loaded evidence gun as his prop. The firearm went off, and he lost his life- but proved his case.