my   Keeper

FOR YEARS I’D welcomed young people from the local youth group to my acre on Blue Mountain in northwest Colorado, where I lived with as many animals as I could tend to. The kids understood.

“My golden retriever sleeps in my room. And snores!”

“My dad’s mule has personality.”

“Five cats live in our barn. I go sit with them. They help me think.”

My animals had taught me many lessons in patience, forgiveness, tolerance and love, and I passed those lessons on to the kids as we all sat