On Losing Ears and Lacking Logic.

I noticed when I passed the field at the top of the lane this evening that one of the lambs had lost an ear. (I say ‘lost’, but how can one know? Maybe the little chap had given it to a passing gypsy in exchange for a goldfish in a plastic bag, or maybe some carnivorous miscreant had eaten it, or maybe it had been injured in a lamb fight and had to be amputated by a vet. Whatever arcane circumstances should have been responsible, however, the fact was indisputable: the poor little lamb was deficient to the tune of an ear.)

And sad as it is to recount, it became immediately apparent that the little creature was deficient in another respect: it no longer had that lambish cuteness generally associated with its breed. And so I was forced to conclude that the fabled cuteness of lambs is dependent on them having two ears properly placed either side of their heads. Interesting undoubtedly, but a shame nonetheless.

*  *  *

On the way back I noticed that the field below the Hansel and Gretel house was totally and unusually devoid of sheep of any age. Only Millie the Horse was in evidence, grazing quietly and lifting her head briefly to watch me pass the gate. A thought instantly occurred to me:

We loners should stick together.

So now it appears I’m given to constructing oxymorons without let or hindrance. That’s a shame, too.