0:01

Welcome to Bedtime

0:03

Stories for Everyone,

0:07

in which nothing much happens,

0:11

you feel good, and

0:13

then you fall asleep. I'm

0:18

Catherine Nikolay. I

0:20

read and write all the

0:22

stories you hear on nothing

0:25

Much happens. Audio

0:28

Engineering is by Bob Wittersheim.

0:33

We give to a different charity each

0:35

week, and this week

0:38

we are giving to a Yeah Marina

0:41

Donkey Rescue,

0:43

where no donkey will ever be

0:46

turned away. Each will

0:48

be cared for and loved for

0:50

the remainder of their lives. Learn

0:53

more about them in our show notes. So

0:57

often I hear from listeners who

1:00

fall asleep within moments

1:03

of starting an episode.

1:06

Sometimes they wish they could actually

1:09

hear the story. Well,

1:13

those are some well trained brains,

1:17

and I'm really glad that

1:19

you're getting the sleep you need.

1:22

But I want to let you know that

1:25

Bob and I made

1:27

a show just for

1:29

this, for daytime

1:32

listening. It's

1:34

called Stories from the Village of

1:37

Nothing Much, and I

1:39

think of it as easy

1:42

listening, but for fiction. Listen

1:46

while you're on your commute, out

1:48

for a walk, when you

1:50

need to be centered and calm

1:54

and surrounded by the ordinary

1:56

magic that is commonplace

1:59

in our village.

2:01

It's free. It doesn't

2:04

put you to sleep, and

2:06

you can find it anywhere you listen. Just

2:09

search stories from the Village of Nothing

2:12

Much on your podcast app.

2:15

Learn more and subscribe

2:17

to our premium channels through

2:19

the links in our show notes. Now

2:25

I have a story to tell you. It

2:28

is a soft place to settle your

2:31

mind, and just

2:33

by listening to it,

2:35

it will build a reliable response

2:38

in your system for sleep.

2:42

I'll tell the story twice,

2:45

and I'll go a little slower the

2:47

second time through. If

2:51

you wake again in the night, turn

2:54

it back on and you'll

2:56

drop right back off, usually

3:00

within seconds. And

3:04

if you're new to this, know

3:07

that this training will improve

3:09

with use, so

3:12

be patient and give it time

3:14

to work. Our

3:17

story tonight is

3:19

called New Friends at

3:22

weather Vane Farm, and

3:25

it's a story about a busy

3:27

spring morning at the sanctuary.

3:32

It's also about branches

3:34

full of singing birds,

3:38

fresh straw and rubber boots,

3:41

new babies born in the

3:43

stalls of the barn, and

3:46

helping each other out along

3:48

the way. Now,

3:52

turn out your light, slip

3:55

down into your sheets,

3:58

and get us comfortable as you can.

4:03

Let your muscles relax and

4:07

your whole body drop

4:10

heavy into the bed. You

4:14

are about to fall

4:16

asleep, and

4:19

you will sleep deeply all

4:22

night. Draw

4:25

breath in through the nose, soft

4:31

sigh from your mouth again,

4:37

Breathe in and

4:42

out. Good

4:52

new friends at weather

4:54

Vane Farm. We

4:59

were up early today, not

5:03

just because the birds were

5:05

having an all comers

5:08

talent show and seeing off in

5:10

the branches, though

5:13

certainly they were and

5:16

had been at it since well before

5:19

the sun rose. No,

5:23

we were up early today

5:26

because there were a lot

5:29

of furry and feathered folks

5:32

to check on. Our

5:36

little farm sanctuary had

5:39

been growing over the last

5:41

few years, from

5:44

the first goats pig

5:47

had come here to relax into

5:49

their retirement years, to

5:52

the donkeys, cows,

5:55

ducks, and geese, among others

5:59

who joined us since we'd

6:04

met and fallen in love with

6:07

a lot of animals, and

6:11

in the last few days our

6:13

family had grown even more. We

6:19

set out in our barn clothes

6:22

and rubber boots I

6:26

couldn't remember when

6:28

I'd last worn anything

6:31

else, and

6:33

trumped across the yard.

6:39

I slid open the big barn

6:41

door to a chorus

6:43

of calls from our residents,

6:47

who were all ready for breakfast

6:51

and to get out into the sun on

6:53

this lovely spring day. We

6:59

usually start garded with the stalls

7:01

closest to the door, went

7:05

in order down one side

7:08

and back up the other, and

7:12

our animals certainly

7:14

knew that. But

7:17

things had changed a few

7:19

days before,

7:22

and we sure heard about it as

7:24

we went straight back to

7:26

the farthest pen. We

7:29

couldn't help it. We

7:32

had baby goats,

7:37

twins that had been born

7:40

early in the morning three

7:43

days ago. They

7:46

were black with a few

7:49

white and brown spots, and

7:52

we told them apart because

7:55

one, the little girl, had

7:59

right on top of her head, a

8:02

white spot that looked

8:04

like a smudged thumb print.

8:08

I liked thinking about her genetic

8:11

blueprint, coding

8:14

that special part of her while

8:17

she waited to be born. We'd

8:22

had volunteers watching

8:24

over her mom nearly

8:27

around the clock in

8:29

the days before she gave birth, and

8:34

since they had been the ones to

8:37

go without sleep, we'd

8:39

let them name the twins. The

8:45

little girl was called Geraldine

8:48

and her brother Topper. I

8:53

don't know where those names

8:55

had come from, but

8:58

they seemed to fit the kids and

9:02

our farm in general. We

9:05

went with the flow here, rolled

9:09

with whatever came, like

9:11

the weather van did up

9:14

on top of the barn when

9:18

we peeked over the edge of the stall.

9:22

We found them both huddled with

9:24

their mom having breakfast.

9:28

Their mom was so good and

9:30

patient with them. I'd

9:34

been there as they were born, and

9:37

even in her exhaustion, she

9:40

cleaned them and brought them close. They

9:45

were thriving under her care, and

9:48

I was already a

9:50

bit nervous about the trouble

9:53

these new kids would get into.

9:57

Goats are just built

10:00

different. Of all

10:02

the animals here at weather Vane,

10:06

the goats were the silliest, the

10:09

cleverest, dare deevils.

10:13

They climbed on anything, jumped

10:16

off everything, tried

10:19

to eat whatever fit in their

10:21

mouths and some things

10:23

that didn't. And

10:26

they were also so sweet and

10:29

loving. It's

10:31

just that that comes

10:34

after the chaos.

10:39

Once we checked in with the goats

10:42

and had filled the troughs with feed,

10:46

replenished their water, and

10:49

opened the door that led them

10:52

out into their yard,

10:56

we went back to the front of the barn

10:59

and started our normal mourning

11:01

chores. Geraldine

11:06

and Topper weren't the only

11:08

new babies here at the

11:10

farm, but they

11:12

were the ones with

11:15

the potential to cause the most trouble,

11:18

so they got first look

11:20

of the day in

11:24

the stall by the front. We

11:26

opened the door and ushered

11:29

the ducks and geese

11:31

out into their yard for breakfast.

11:36

At the end of the waddling line

11:39

came a couple tall fawn

11:42

and white runner ducks with

11:45

a tiny row of ducklings behind

11:47

them. They

11:50

were so adorable I

11:53

couldn't stand it. I wanted to

11:55

scoop them up and

11:57

bring their downy little bodies

12:01

close to my face. I

12:05

resisted. Their parents

12:07

were watching closely as

12:10

each little duck tottered

12:12

down the ramp at the front

12:15

of the barn and

12:17

into the grass. They'd

12:21

spend the morning pecking in

12:23

the yard and

12:25

then testing out the pond as

12:29

the ducklets learned to swim.

12:34

We had several types of ducks here,

12:37

but and don't

12:39

tell anyone this, the

12:42

runners were my favorite.

12:45

They stand upright

12:48

like penguins, and

12:50

they really do run a

12:53

little clumsily, but still

12:56

they are speedy. We

13:01

kept making our way through

13:03

the barn, feeding,

13:06

watering, cleaning,

13:11

raking out straw, and

13:13

bringing in fresh, sweet

13:16

smelling bales to replace it. Our

13:21

cows, Winnie the Move and

13:24

his mom, whom we called

13:26

Frieda, went

13:29

out to have a good scratch on

13:31

the brushes we'd installed on the

13:33

fence posts. The

13:38

pigs were happy to see us and

13:41

wagged their tails as

13:43

we brought their breakfast. That's

13:46

when the brain from

13:49

our coffl of donkeys got loud.

13:54

They'd been patient waiting

13:57

their turn for breakfast in

13:59

playtime, but

14:02

they'd had enough and were he

14:05

hying loudly. Even

14:09

before I rounded the wall that

14:12

edged their pen, I

14:14

had a wide smile on my face.

14:19

Our donkeys, Bumblebee and

14:21

Turnip, had

14:23

their first fall a month

14:25

before. His

14:28

name was George,

14:30

and his soft gray fur reminded

14:34

me of the duckling's fuzzy down.

14:39

I went straight into their

14:41

pen, and

14:43

they all crowded around me, begging

14:46

for pets with their long noses.

14:52

If the goats were the silliest

14:54

farm residents, the

14:57

donkeys were the most affectionate. If

15:01

we'd let them, they'd sleep

15:03

in the house with us, curled up

15:05

trying to share beds with the dogs.

15:10

Baby George, still

15:12

a bit shy, stood back

15:14

behind Bumblebee,

15:17

and only after I'd been in

15:19

with them for a few minutes, slowly

15:23

trotted forward to

15:25

have his own head scratched out.

15:29

We went into the yard and

15:33

George ran into the sun

15:38

since he'd figured out running.

15:40

He'd been showing it off, speeding

15:44

up and down the length of the barnyard,

15:49

braying and kicking up dirt. His

15:54

anti Muriel, a small

15:56

donkey whose coloring was

15:59

for some reason called

16:01

roan and broken, meaning

16:04

brown and white, trotted

16:07

after him. She

16:09

tended to babysit George when

16:12

they were out in the yard together, and

16:15

I was glad for that. Muriel's

16:19

eyesight was not very good,

16:22

and donkeys often helped

16:25

their friends at times

16:27

like those. I

16:30

guessed in a year or so,

16:34

when George was a little more grown,

16:38

and when Muriel's sight was

16:40

a little dimmer, he'd

16:43

be leading her out to the pasture,

16:47

guiding her to the trough and

16:50

water barrels.

16:54

I paused with the rake in my hands,

16:57

and stood tall, sting

17:00

my spine

17:02

and looking out at our animal family,

17:07

the goats jumping on the picnic

17:09

table, the ducks

17:11

floating in the pond, Frida

17:16

and Winnie, George

17:19

and Aunt Muriel. We

17:23

would have a

17:25

wonderful summer this

17:27

year. New

17:32

friends at weather Vane

17:34

Farm. We

17:39

were up early this morning,

17:43

not just because the birds

17:46

were having an

17:48

all comers talent show and

17:51

sing off in the branches, though

17:55

certainly they were, and

17:59

they'd been at it since well

18:01

before the sun rose. Now

18:05

we were up early today

18:09

because there were a lot of

18:11

furried and feathered folks

18:15

to check on. Our

18:18

little farm sanctuary had

18:21

been growing over the last few

18:23

years, from

18:26

the first goats and

18:29

pig who'd come here

18:31

to relax into

18:33

their retirement years, to

18:37

the donkeys, cows,

18:40

ducks, and geese,

18:43

among others, who

18:46

joined us since we'd

18:50

met and fallen

18:52

in love with a lot of

18:54

animals, and

18:56

in the last few days

19:00

our family had grown even

19:02

more. We

19:07

set out in our barn clothes

19:10

and rubber boots I

19:13

couldn't remember when

19:15

I'd last worn anything else,

19:20

and tromped across the yard. I

19:24

slid open the big barn

19:26

door to a chorus

19:29

of calls from our residents,

19:33

who were all ready for breakfast

19:37

and to get out into the sun on

19:40

this lovely spring day. We

19:45

usually started with the stalls

19:48

closest to the door, went

19:51

in order down one

19:53

side and back up the other,

19:57

and our animals certainly

20:00

knew that. But

20:03

things had changed a

20:05

few days before, and

20:09

we sure heard about it. As

20:12

we went straight back to

20:14

the farthest pen. We

20:17

couldn't help it. We

20:20

had baby goats,

20:24

twins that had been born

20:26

early in the morning three

20:29

days ago. They

20:32

were black with a few

20:35

white and brown spots,

20:39

and we told them apart because

20:41

one, the little girl, had

20:46

right on top of her head, a

20:48

white spot that

20:51

looked like a smudged thumbprint.

20:55

I liked thinking about her genetic

20:58

blueprint,

21:01

coding that special part of

21:03

her while she waited

21:05

to be born. We'd

21:10

had volunteers watching

21:12

over her mom nearly

21:15

around the clock in

21:17

the days before she gave birth,

21:21

and since they had

21:23

been the ones to go without

21:26

sleep, we'd let

21:28

them name the twins.

21:32

The little girl was called Geraldine

21:36

and her brother Topper.

21:40

I don't know where those names

21:43

had come from, but they

21:47

seemed to fit the kids and

21:49

our farm in general. We

21:53

went with the flow here, rolled

21:57

with whatever came, like

22:00

the weather vein did on

22:02

top of the barn. When

22:07

we peeked over the edge of the stall,

22:11

we found them both huddled with their

22:13

mom having breakfast.

22:17

Their mom was so good and patient

22:20

with them. I'd

22:22

been there as they were born, and

22:25

even in her exhaustion, she

22:29

cleaned them and brought

22:31

them close. They

22:34

were thriving under her care, and

22:37

I was already a bit nervous

22:40

about the trouble these

22:42

new kids would get into. Goats

22:47

are just built different.

22:51

Of all the animals here at weather

22:53

Vane, the goats were

22:56

the silliest, the cleverest,

22:59

daredevil. They

23:02

climbed on anything, jumped

23:05

off everything, tried

23:09

to eat whatever fit

23:11

in their mouths, and

23:13

some things that didn't. They

23:17

were also sweet and

23:19

loving, It's just

23:22

that that comes after

23:24

the chaos. Once

23:28

we'd checked in with the goats

23:32

and had filled troughs with feed,

23:35

replenished their water, and

23:39

opened the door that led them

23:41

out into their yard, we

23:44

went back to the front of the barn

23:48

and started our normal morning

23:50

chores. Geraldine

23:54

and Topper weren't the only new

23:56

babies here at the farm,

24:00

but they were the ones with

24:02

the potential to cause the most

24:05

trouble, so

24:07

they got first look of

24:10

the day in

24:13

the stall by the front. We

24:16

opened the door and

24:19

ushered the ducks and geese

24:22

out to their yard for breakfast.

24:26

At the end of the waddling line

24:29

came a couple tall fawn

24:32

and white runner ducks

24:35

with a tiny row of ducklings

24:38

behind them. They

24:42

were so adorable I

24:44

couldn't stand it. I

24:48

wanted to scoop them up and

24:51

bring their downy little bodies

24:54

close to my face. I

24:58

resisted there. Parents

25:00

were watching closely as

25:03

each little duck tottered

25:06

down the ramp at the front of the barn

25:09

and into the grass.

25:14

They'd spend the morning pecking

25:16

in the yard and

25:19

then testing out the pond as

25:22

the ducklets learned to swim.

25:28

We had several different types

25:30

of ducks here, but

25:35

and don't tell anyone this, the

25:38

runners were my favorite.

25:42

They stand upright like

25:45

penguins, and they really do

25:47

run a little

25:49

clumsily, but still

25:52

they are speedy. We

25:56

kept making our way through the barn,

25:59

feeding, watering, cleaning,

26:04

raking out straw, and

26:06

bringing in fresh, sweet

26:09

smelling bales to replace it. Our

26:14

cows, Winnie the Moon and

26:17

his mom, whom we called Frieda,

26:21

went out to have a good scratch

26:23

on the brushes we'd installed on

26:26

the fence posts.

26:31

The pigs were happy to see us

26:34

and wagged their tails as

26:36

we brought their breakfast. That's

26:39

when the brain from

26:42

our little coffle of donkeys got

26:44

loud. They

26:47

had been patient waiting

26:49

their turn for breakfast

26:52

and playtime, that they'd

26:54

had enough and

26:56

were he hawing loudly. Even

27:00

before I rounded the wall that edged

27:03

their pen, I

27:05

had a wide smile on my

27:07

face. Our

27:11

donkeys, Bumblebee and

27:14

Turnip, had had their first

27:16

foal a month before.

27:20

His name was George,

27:23

and his soft gray fur reminded

27:26

me of the duckling's

27:29

fuzzy down. I

27:32

went straight into their pen, and

27:36

they all crowded around me, begging

27:39

for pets on their long noses.

27:45

If the goats were the silliest

27:47

farm residents, the

27:51

donkeys were the most affectionate.

27:55

If we let them, they'd sleep

27:57

in the house with us, curled

28:00

up trying to share beds

28:03

with the dogs. Baby

28:07

George, still a bit shy,

28:11

stood back behind Bumblebee,

28:15

but only after I'd been in with

28:17

them for a few minutes, slowly

28:21

trotted forward to

28:23

have his own head scratched out.

28:29

We went into the yard and

28:32

George ran out into the

28:35

sun. Since

28:40

he'd figured out running,

28:43

he'd penned showing it off, speeding

28:47

up and down the length of the barn

28:49

yard, braying and

28:51

kicking up dirt. His

28:55

anti Muriel, a

28:57

small donkey whose

29:00

coloring was for some reason

29:02

called roan and broken meaning

29:06

brown and white, trotted

29:08

after him.

29:11

She tended to babysit George

29:14

when they were out in the yard together. But

29:18

I was glad for that. Muriel's

29:21

eyesight was not very good,

29:25

and donkeys often help

29:28

their friends at times like those.

29:32

My guest in a year or so, when

29:35

George was a little more grown up, and

29:39

when Muriel's sight was

29:41

a little dimmer, he'd

29:44

be leading her out to the pasture,

29:48

guiding her to the trough and

29:50

water barrels. I

29:54

paused with the rake in my hands,

29:58

and stood tall, stretching

30:00

my spine and

30:03

looking out at our animal family,

30:08

the goats jumping on the picnic table,

30:12

the ducks floating

30:14

in the pond, Frida

30:17

and Winnie,

30:20

George and Aunt Muriel. We

30:24

would have a busy,

30:27

wonderful summer this year.

30:33

Sweet Dreams,