This Little Piggy

That very children’s nursery rhyme popped into my mind as I sat to write this and as I went through the rest of the song, a different meaning took shape. Growing up I always thought the song to mean one pig went shopping, one pig ended up not going, one pig had a delightful roast beef sandwich, one pig didn’t get any roast beef, and one pig was sad.

Seemed logical. It was a song that accompanied the playing with children’s toes so why wouldn’t it be the depiction of some happy piglets (minus the sad one) enjoying the different parts of their day? I’ve seen varied versions of the song in cartoons such as MacMillan household favorite Cocomelon. As a parent, I’ve belted out the verses while playing with my own children’s toes. That was my world pre-pig.

I say pre-pig because that was my life and exposure before we raised our two red wattles pigs, Donut and Apple, and yes….pre-pig implies that there must also be a post-pig.

We aren’t too deep into the post-pig era on the farm. They made the trip to the butcher last week. In that time we have been able to prep their paddock so it can further benefit our family, this time in the form of a garden.

I gained a grander respect for those two wonderful animals during my attempts to level out their “nests” as we called them. Those nests were essentially large craters that they would lay in for their frequent sunning periods, soaking in that wonderful vitamin D. Fun fact: pastured pigs absorb healthy quantities of vitamin D3 during their time spent under our closest star. That vitamin D is then stored in the lard of the animal which could then be used as a healthier, more stable cooking fat. This more stable version of a cooking fat won’t create free radicals (unstable atoms which have potential to damage cells leading to premature aging, illness, or cause other harm) in the body. Feel free to impress your friends with that one.

Those craters though….

I’ve written about it before but those pigs were brought on to the farm for their tiling prowess. Those powerful noses are biological excavators. Digging and moving dirt is their specialty and those two pigs did their jobs splendidly. Too good of a job really. Moving all that dirt back to even out the ground was a chore, so much so that I had to recruit the assistance of a buddy and his tractor to box blade it.

Now that the work is done, the rain we just had should help settle it and it’ll be ready for planting. All of which was made possible by the two pigs.

I write this out of the massive respect I have for the animals that grace our land. We’ve received a fair amount of questions regarding how we could raise our own meat, create relationships with them, etc. I honestly don’t know if I have great answers and even if I did, if they’d be accepted by those who were inquiring. Raising animals as food is a heavy thing. There’s a lot of feelings that go into it. The drive to and subsequent drop off at the butcher was a learning experience. My oldest daughter’s tears and concerns for the pigs didn’t make it easier. Nor did the first time I set aside my apple core from lunch to indulge them with a sweet treat only to remember their paddock contained only a water barrel.

That drop off was different. Eye opening.

I’ve come to learn over the years that a person’s relationship with the food they eat has the potential to be the most impactful one they hold. It encompasses the entire lifespan of an individual and is something they can’t escape. While it’s certainly possible to neglect that relationship, it’s a necessity. As all relationships we experience go, they have their ups and downs. They can be strengthened and weakened. We can nourish them and deplete them.

This experience with raising the pigs accomplished each of the aforementioned relational aspects, the highs and lows, the pitfalls and the growth points. It would be fair to say the experience allowed me to reconnect with the part of me that relationship that had been fractured. Raising animals for the intent of food showcases the true cost for what many people have come to think of as a mere commodity, something can easily just be found and replaced on the outskirts of the local grocery store.

Do I think everyone should raise their own pigs, cows, or chickens for their own food? No. Am I more morally sound for raising our own food? Not at all and that is not the tone I look to take with these words. I just want a better option for our family and taking part in these processes allows us to opt in to better food systems that can strengthen our relationship with the food we eat and the land we live on.

I know in our area we are blessed and amazed to be surrounded by numerous people doing similar things in all different shapes and sizes. Some offer up products for sale and I would encourage you to find ways to support your local food producers which are much easier to locate thanks to the Google machine that is oh so easy to access.

So…about that nursery rhyme…

I hear it differently now. The words carry a new haunting tone to them that replaces the upbeat version that previously took residence within my mind. There is a new reality to the meaning of those stanzas. No more images of smiling pigs at the mall eating their lunch and no, not even Cocomelon can get them back.

“This little piggy went to market…” now carries a new weight of respect for the animal. Something that I don’t believe can be understood by those other than those that hunt or raise animals for food. Just my two cents for what it’s worth.

I appreciate you hanging around and reading.

Until next time.

BMac