In Suffolk, Virginia, farmer Kate Callahan is nurturing sheep, lavender and peace.
We felt calm just reading this story from the Virginian-Pilot about how Callahan is making zen a priority at her farm.
Callahan produces a natural skin care products that has become popular among tattoo artists because fans of the product believe the cream helps skin heal faster.
The sheep on Callahan’s Brentwood Farm are at the basis of her products. She initially hoped to use tallow from the sheep to create a body cream, but found her sheep didn’t have enough fat.
It’s not easy to balance that joy in purpose with necessity. Even with a few years’ experience selecting sheep for slaughter – Brentwood first got sheep in 2012 – Callahan said sorting them never becomes routine. It’s a difficult, emotional task.
Even outside of harvest, Callahan said ensuring a farm has a peaceful pulse can be an upward battle. Disease or injury can happen, and the threat of predators is real. She once witnessed a new lamb being carried off by a bald eagle, and coyotes have prowled lately.
You like to think if you do everything right, nothing bad will happen. But that’s not true,” Callahan said.
So, she injects calm wherever she can. Playing classical music while trimming the animals’ hooves, for example, keeps Callahan centered. Though sheep are naturally skittish and wary, Callahan said, the animals are able to pick up and mimic her calm.
It takes us both down a notch,” she said.
Photo: Brentwood Farm
