All in all it was a question of losing some and winning some. We benefited tremendously and lost minimal amounts. But the joy in having the chance to see animals, poultry and plants grow from nothing to something was more than satisfying.
We watched the ground crack for the seeds to germinate and face the sun while the roots penetrated downwards. Two leaves turned into numerous leaves and weeding was necessary over and over as development progressed. The ground consumed water to sustain growth. Manure enriched the soil and fed the plants.
Flowering came about and bees were busy doing pollination. Maturity followed and before too long we were eating and selling the end products.
The animals conceived and embryos turned into calves, kids, lambs, litters, chicks in our presence. The young ones developed into adults as we observed and brought forth their own young ones.
It was beautiful. There is no better life than this. We ate what we knew. We grew and bred what we liked. Nature was revolving right there.
In times of plenty, we peeled washed and dried excess green cooking bananas, cassava and sweet potatoes in the hot sun and stored them ready for use in future when the harvests were low. We also salted and smoked excess mutton and goat meat and kept it safe for cooking later.
Our homestead was a haven of peace for different creatures. Our vegetables, grain crops, root crops, fruits and animal feed did well because of our enduring care. Our cattle and poultry thrived due to the nurturing and sustenance we gave them. We survived well due to the adequate livelihood we made available.
Bees came because of flowers on plants and trees. Birds of various types both big and small came to pick worms and grain crops. Wild animals, occasionally harvested our grain crops, bananas, fruits and eggs. But, all of them were simply taking their share to keep the ecosystem balanced.