Posted on Jan 18, 2018
By Ellie Laks, Founder of The Gentle Barn
This last week Jay and I traveled to Missouri to visit with our manager Michelle and the animals and to see how everyone was doing. The property was gorgeous, the animals were happy and healthy, and the organization seems well run and efficient. It was so lovely to meet the goats, Baron and Hazel, and the new piggy, Penny. When we saw the St. Louis Six for the first time in months, though, they took our breath away!
After we had set up, fenced, and built The Gentle Barn Missouri over the summer and brought the cows home, they were still scared and skittish, and it took a long time to get them to take treats from our hands and not bolt when they saw us. After hours of sitting with them, they finally relaxed and allowed us to be with them, albeit from a distance. Their real healing took place after we left, when Michelle and our amazing volunteers sat patiently with them day after day, reading, singing, and talking to them for hours. In just a month or so they transformed from feral cows to puppies who took cookies out of their hands and came running when they saw them at the gate. Jay and I were so very proud of their progress!
We had seen their transformation on live feeds and heard about it on the phone with Michelle, but none of that prepared us for what it would feel like to be up close to Chico, feel his warmth, and hug him. I remember the first time I met Chico, several months ago after they were saved from slaughter, healed at the hospital, and moved to their temporary foster home. Jay and I flew out to meet the boys so we could figure out next steps for them. The cows were at a distance, under a shade tree when we arrived and got out of the car. When he saw us, Chico stepped forward and came to greet me. He was so very powerful and wise beyond his years that I fell to my knees and burst into tears. He might have been dressed as a cow and disguised as a baby, but his soul was ancient and his heart wide open. I knew in that moment that there was no way that this sage should end up in a pasture to eat and poop for the rest of his life. He came with a message for the world, and I had to help him share it. I swore in that moment that I would create a Gentle Barn for them all, and I would bring people in from all over the world to meet them, hear their story, be inspired to kindness and compassion, and change to world. Now five months later, to be standing next to him and touching him for the first time, it moved me to tears!
I stroked his fur, cradled his head in my arms, and rested my head on his side. I closed my eyes, breathed in deep, and felt his energy all around me. I renewed my vows to him again, promising to bring more people to meet him and be changed by him forever. I do not see him as a cow, or even an animal, I see him as an ancient teacher, working by my side to open hearts, save lives, and change the world forever! I am deeply, deeply grateful to be doing this work alongside ambassadors such as Chico, and I highly recommend coming for a visit and meeting him, as he is sure to move you to tears as well!