Little Lamb

    One Saturday morning, many, many years ago, a truck drove into our driveway and a man I didn't know got out and approached me. "Mrs. Martin, here's your lamb."  He walked to the back of the truck and lifted out the sweetest little baby lamb and placed it in my arms. I stood in shock for a few seconds and without another word, he climbed back into his truck and started the engine. I quickly regained my voice and hurried to his side of the truck.  "Excuse me, sir, but I don't understand."  He started backing out of the driveway and over his shoulder tossed a casual remark. "Your husband said next time I had a new lamb to bring it here to his children. Here it is . It's two weeks old." With that he tipped his hat and left me standing there with my mouth open and my arms holding a soft, cuddly baby lamb.
     By now, Mark and Debbie, both pre-school age, were beside me, jumping up and down in excitement.  I herded the children into our high-fenced-in backyard, locked the gate behind us, and gently set the lamb down on the grass.  Immediately, he (it was a "he"lamb) was covered with pats and hugs and kisses and oohs and aahhs.  I must confess I was as bad as the children.  We had never seen such a young lamb so close-up and I must say, I have never seen any animal more beautiful, loveable, adorable...well, you get the idea.. This little fellow won our hearts with one glance from his big soft eyes and one tiny bleat..baaaa.
      Leaving the children happily in charge of the lamb, I hurried inside and called my husband at his office at the church which was just next door. He answered immediately. (I found later he had been sitting there waiting for my call. The farmer had already called him and told him the lamb had been delivered.) He came right over and the little lamb made a new conquest.
      Mark and Debbie had three questions in this order: (1) Can we keep him? (2) What's his name? (3) Can we feed him?  The first two answers were easy. (1) Yes, you may keep him. (2) His name is Boots. (What else?? I took one look at his snowy fleece and sooty black nose, ears and feet. He looked like he was dressed in high fashion with four tiny black "boots".)  (3)  Now we do have a problem. I don't know what little lambs this young can eat.  I called our "people doctor, Dr. Ethelyn Smith".  She always knew the right answer for everything.  Well, her advice..."You will have to raise him on a bottle till he can eat for himself."
       So. We bought a baby  bottle and filled it with warm milk. (After all, I was a mother and had brought my own two up on bottle feedings so surely it couldn't be all that different. Babies are babies are babies.)  That sweet little lamb took to the bottle like it was second nature, and of course everybody wanted to feed him. He was so cute.  Braced stiffly on his little wide spread legs , he smacked and slurped happily and noisily, his little abbreviated flip of a tail wagging furiously, till the bottle was empty.  Then he just lay  down , daintily tucked his forelegs underneath himself and went to sleep.  More decisions must be made. Where would he sleep?  Clyde found a big cardboard box . We put straw in the bottom and placed it in a corner in the kitchen, having decided it was still too cold to put such a young lamb outside alone.  It worked perfectly. He didn't mind the box at all and when he was hungry he would bleat that sweet little sound..baaaaa.  After the new wore off, all feedings fell to me. At first he could be held easily and fed and was very gentle and well behaved. As he grew bigger, he would stand on his hind legs and place his front hoofs on my thighs while I held the bottle for him to feed.  I wore dark bruises for a long time till he graduated to solid fare.
    We kept him in the house and believe it or not, there were no mishaps. He was easily housebroken. He was very neat and clean by nature, never destructive, and had a gentle, sweet, loveable disposition.  He stayed inside much of the time till the weather grew warmer, just as a puppy or kitten would do and followed me about as I did my housework.  His little hoofs would tap-tap-tap staccato on the floor.  He learned the doorbell signaled company and would trot beside me to answer the door.  Many times I would open the door and hide a smile when the caller would glance down and do a double-take at seeing a beautiful little lamb standing there. Boots became part of our family.
    An old red couch on the back porch became his favorite resting place. He would curl up on one end and calmly survey his world.. our backyard.  He would romp and play with Mark and Debbie; he, bleating and leaping, and they, laughing and squealing and jumping with their little playmate.
     Then we began to notice that Boots was developing little buttons..little bumps on his head.  The little bumps became little horns. His body was becoming more muscular and he was getting heavier. His play was becoming rougher and once in a while the children would come in crying, "Boots butted me down."
      We realized the time had come to move Boots to the farm of a friend who was glad to give him a good home and pasture.  We explained to our weeping children that Boots needed to be in a big field with lots of room to run and play and leap and grow and he would meet new sheep friends.  We assured them we could go to see him anytime they wished. So one day our friend brought his truck; we all loved on Boots for the last time, petted and hugged and kissed him goodbye, and waved as we watched the truck out of sight.
      The house was very silent that night.  No patter of little hoofs…no baaaa. The backyard and his red couch looked so empty.  We missed looking into those big soft innocent eyes. We missed hugging that dear warm little white lamb.
     We visited Boots at the farm a few times but saw how happy he was and knew we had done the best thing for him. That was many years ago but Boots still holds a very special place in our hearts.   I can still see him the day the man handed him to me and said, "Here's your lamb."  In memory, he will always be that precious, adorable, beautiful,
loveable little fluffy white, cuddly lamb whose name was Boots. He brought such joy and sheer pleasure to our home and we will always be grateful to have been so blessed.

Once we had a little lamb,
So many years ago.  
He was so soft and cuddly,
With fleece like whitest snow.
He  had the sweetest manner,
So innocent and mild,
His eyes were large and  trusting,
He drew from us a smile.

He won our hearts in no time.
He was gentle as a dove
We petted and we hugged him
And showered him with love.
He trusted us completely
He came to be so dear.
He followed in our footsteps,
He loved to have us near.

He was our children's playmate
They ran and skipped with glee.
They tumbled laughing to the ground
Such fun they had, those three.
But little lambs, like girls and boys,
Grow up , too fast, too soon.
We moved him to a friendly farm
One sunny day in June.

He had an open meadow
Green grass and shady trees,
With room to run and frolic,
Chasing butterflies and bees.
Twas hard for us to leave him
We'd come to love him so.
We keep the memory of him
No matter where we go

 

Have you ever been really close...REALLY close…to a little lamb?  The feeling is indescribable...you want to smile, to laugh, to sigh, toutter oohs and aahhs; you might even experience a strange blurring of your eyes and a tightening in your throat.  You have an intense desire to cuddle and pet the precious little creature.  How can a little animal, cute as it might be, have such an effect?  Of course it is one of Nature's most beautiful babies. Soft white fleece you can curl your fingers into.  Black eyes and nose and ears and four neat little black "booted" feet, A fluff of a flippy tail…But there's more....a sweet innocence, a quiet, gentle disposition, an attitude of trust .. There's just something about a lamb...You want to protect it from any danger or harm or mistreatment.  Why??
     Could it be because of the references and significance of lambs found in the Bible ? Time and space prevent a lengthy study, but David in the Psalms refers to God's people as sheep of His pasture and of course sheep need a Shepherd.  So many sacrifices demanded a spotless lamb, without spot or blemish...the BEST. But I think of the day when Jesus walked beside Jordan and John the Baptist looked intently after Him, lifted his arm , pointed to the Man walking along the shore, and raised his voice...."Behold the Lamb of God Who taketh away the sins of the word." Jesus lived a spotless, pure life, walked among mankind doing nothing but good, healing minds and bodies and saving souls. He taught of heavenly things the people had never heard of, He forgave sins...He quieted storms with a word, He raised the dead.  And yet He was "led as a Lamb to the slaughter", never with a single word to defend Himself. Stood helpless and defenseless as a gentle lamb. Was slain as the Ultimate Sacrificial Lamb, His life's blood flowing away in an outpouring of Divine Love. "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.  "The risen Lamb in Heaven, Who "alone is worthy to receive praise and honor and glory" When the man brought our little lamb, Boots, he simply said, " Here's your lamb" and placed that precious little lamb in my arms.  When Jesus died on Calvary's cross, was buried and raised again.,  God, the Father, said to the lost, and dying world, to you , to me..
      "Here's your Lamb.  "I received him, Jesus, the Lamb of God, Who died for my sins, into my heart.  Have you?

allrights/ruthmartin/2/5/04...