Shearing-an annual ritual on every sheep farm-where sheep fall still in the hands of the shearer and wool falls to the floor in thick blankets. Shearer works with confidence and ease, talking to the sheep as clippers buzz, balancing between knees and carefully placed feet. Ewe sits, completely trusting the hands of the shearer. Onlookers wonder at the rhythm of the dance, the pattern of the swiping blades, shifting ewe, and shuffling feet. All appears so easy and effortless, yet you see the strength and skill, the hidden secrets of shearing, with every move.
In a matter of time, all sheep are shorn, slick and shiny, rubbing on feeders to scratch their new found skin. Bags lay with warm blankets of wool, each labeled with the name of the sheep. Clippers hushed, floor swept, the shearer leaves in her truck as more sheep must be shorn on another farm before her journey home.
