Neighbors matter in the country; they show up long before the sheriff can get here. We are fortunate to have as good a neighbor as anyone could have. I can’t count the number of times he has come to help us.

His name is Jack Macmillan, he and his wife Kim are the people we call first when we are in trouble. If you live on a farm with animals, you are often in trouble.

Trees fall on fences; animals escape, get sick, die, get tangled up in brush, barns collapse and sometimes burn, wells fail, septics overflow, the wind blows trees down, slate off roofs, snow is sometimes too high to shovel.

When Simon had a stroke and died, the vet warned us to get his body out of sight of the road; animal rights people driving by would call the police and accuse us of animal abuse.

I said I could hardly believe that, but he assured me it happens all the time.

It was painful to drag Simon out of sight in so undignified a way, but we did get him out of sight.  That’s America in 2021. Simon deserved better, so did we.

Another neighbor came by with a tractor and buried him in the pasture.

Jack and Kim showed up without being called; they seem to know when we are in trouble.

Jack’s family has owned land here for many years, and Jack knows to do everything, from fix plumbing problems to help us safely dispose of dead animals. He also provides some emergency help with electrical crises or frozen pipes.

When the power goes out for long periods, I take my medication over to his house; he has a generator.

He has often taken pity on me, a flatlander, who knows little about fixing things.

Time after time, when I call him, I see his big orange tractor chugging up the road to help.

Jack and Kim would never take payment, of course, and we would never offend them by offering any unless it was some routine repair work.

We are neighbors, and neighbors help each other. But they are passionate gardeners, and every year, we call them and offer our donkey manure. Jack rarely calls me for help because he has Jack, and I have me. Maria is plenty handy for routine catastrophes.

They are grateful for the manure and use every bit.

Donkey manure is among the best fertilizer. This morning, Jack came by with his tractor and an old horse carriage he restored and used to haul things out of his woods and yard.

Mount Manure is part of our landscape and is featured in many of my photos.  It will be back in just a few weeks. He got a truckload full of manure.

Jack was grateful for it and got all of our Mount Manure into his carriage. There is nobody we would rather have our manure than Jack and Kim. It feels good to repay them in some way.

I don’t even care to think about what life would be like without Jack and Kim.