Last Thursday marked the beginning of my 23rd year of life. Of course, that means I am now 22. I am pretty stoked to be 22. I feel 22. And unlike other birthdays (which are just glorified days when you eat cake and have parties) I actually did something cool on my 22nd birthday. I harvested a rabbit.
As you, my loyal fan base, most likely remember, I have been raising meat rabbits for our farm. After speaking with an experienced rabbit harvester, D, the husband of my friend and teacher Laura, we decided that July 19th was the day. I was so nervous. I knew it had to happen sooner or later, but I really had no idea what to expect. On top of that, I was throwing a big party on the farm that evening and my mom was in town. I had a lot on my plate.
Nevertheless, I wanted to respect D's time, so I set off preparing for the big harvest. He sent me a list of things I needed, which I gathered and arranged behind the barn where we were set to do the butchering. The necessary tools included plastic drop cloth, a 1"x6"x14" piece of wood (to put concrete nails in and hang the rabbit from for carving), some buckets for guts and pelts, and a few other tools which D brought with him (a couple of super duper sharp knives, shears, nitrile gloves). And beer.
He arrived right on time and walked me through the whole process. We got everything set up and then went to work. We'd pull each bunny out of the cage and with gloved hands, I would check to see that they were boys and then D would bonk it on the head with a small wooden bat. After a couple of extremely fast (but surprisingly non-violent) whacks on the head, the rabbit was good and dead. They never had the chance to even make a peep.
We then took it around the back of the barn and strung it up by its ankles. D showed me how to butcher it. I was shocked at how much the inside of a rabbit resembled an anatomy book, it was familiar and not gross or scary. It was actually kinda cool. After D did the first 3, he encouraged me to do the last. I was hesitant at first, but with kind encouragement, I became confident that I wanted to do the job myself.
There were three rabbits left in the cage, we knew one was a girl for sure, and were clueless as to the others. Bunnies are famously hard to sex, but when D pulled one of the two mystery bunnies out of its cage and I took a look, it was the first time we could both clearly say "girl". The parts were smaller. So he grabbed the other, "boy" we agreed. He held it and I whacked it, lights out. It was dead. D carried it around the barn, quieting saying a prayer as blood delicately oozed from its nose and I stuck the nails through its ankles, cut it open and went to work. I am so thankful to have had a positive experience throughout this would-be unpleasant process. My teacher was incredibly encouraging and kind, yet no-bullshit about the whole thing. I am very glad to have done this, and I know it's a skill I will use again and again throughout my life. Sorry Vegans.
But enough about killing rabbits. What I am really thinking long and hard about these days in the beauty of goats. My lord. I am in love. Our neighbor Lis, who I've been helping with her goat milking chores, gave me the book Goat Song by Brad Kessler for my birthday and this weekend at the beach I absolutely devoured it. The book romanticizes the shit out of being a goat shepherd, but it rings true in my ears.
This week I am going to begin with some basic cheese-making (since I get paid by Lis in milk) and in October I will be taking some serious cheese-making classes so I can make chevre and mozzarella. Other things I will do this week include: harvest enormous amounts of garlic on the farm (and do whatever else needs to get done--probably weeding) and do my own version of a mini-triathlon (in which I go for a long bike ride, a short run and medium-sized swim). I also hope to go fishing on Thursday. I've never fished before, but what with all the great fishing around here, time on my hands and DIY ethos, it seems like an obvious new hobby.
My birthday always represents the zenith of the summer. Now things are starting to cool off and slow down. In a couple months it will be autumn and the air will be crisp. My routine will change with the weather patterns and although there will be plenty of farm-work through October, even now I am beginning to feel myself turn inward in preparation for a new season.
No comments:
Post a Comment