August 29, 2010: Perfect Nails
I was out and about in my truck the other day and tuned the radio to the BBC. Featuring on the BBC was a documentary about basketballer Manute Bol, the 7ft 7in (2.3m) sporting legend from southern Sudan. Born into the Dinka community of the southern Sudan, Manute Bol was a cattle herder who started playing basketball in his teens. He was talented spotted, plucked out of his pastoral lifestyle in Sudan and jettisoned into the NBA league in the USA. Manute was one of the tallest players in the history of the NBA. I say 'was' because he died on June 19, 2010 at the age of 47.

I write about Manute not because of his stardom in American basketball but because of the legacy he has left behind. His humanitarian efforts in the Sudan are reknowned. He campaigned to bring peace to the Sudanese conflict in Darfur and, of particular interest to us, is how he used his wealth to build a school in his home region and for his Dinka people. This is one of the poorest areas on the planet.

Consider this...In southern Sudan, the illiteracy rate is more than 75%, and over 90% of women and girls cannot read or write. In the whole of Sudan there is only 30 miles, yes, that is thirty miles, of paved roadways in the country; a country the size of Spain and Portugal combined. The southern Sudan has been decimated by civil war. The 'Lost Boys of Sudan' are more than 27,000 boys of the Nuer and Dinka ethnic groups who were displaced and/or orphaned during the Second Sudanese Civil War (1983–2005, about 2 million killed). Many of these boys survived because they were away tending herds when government troops attacked villages killing many of the inhabitants and burning whole villages, schools included.

Maunte's dream was to build 41 schools...one school at a time. His first school project was the Turalei School.

Just after the BBC documentary finished, a bright pink smart car hurtled past me...with a great big decal on the back with the words "Perfect Nails." Could the contrast have been more stark? Reality check! Quibble not about pretty fingernails or even points you think you should have gotten at a sheepdog trial, and think about those herding boys (and girls) who could learn to read and write...

From now and until the end of the 2011 Open Trial season, I'm going to donate every penny of my trial 'winnings' to Manute Bol's Turalei School Project through Sudan Sunrise. Given my skills and abilities that might be enough to buy a couple of pencils!! :-) If I can ever learn to stuff sheep IN a pen, and not around it, then perhaps it will be enough to buy some paper, chalk and chalkboards as well. Anyone want to join me? I'll keep you posted on my progress!

...extra motivation to learn how to pen sheep.

Oh yeah we did go trialling this week. Llansadwrn on Friday. Sheep awful and couldn't pen or complete a maltese cross...hang on, yep, I did get sheep through one lane of the maltese cross but it was the wrong lane. Oops! I blame it on brain flatulence. I ran young Steffi at this trial to give her some outrun practice away from home. She passed the test but I am still unconvinced about her readiness to run nursery trials!

Saturday we went to the Glyn Ceiriog trial in North Wales. Now that was quite the hike to get to and GPS took us through the most rural parts of Wales. A very scenic route and thoroughly enjoyable. It would be fantastic to go gathering in some of the areas we drove through...very much like Scotland. The trial itself was superb. Not the traditional trial course yet again but right up our alley. Meg and Tina had the best runs of the day (for us) with Meg drawing a rotten ewe who did not want to 'play' when we got the sheep to my feet and it was run over. Meg did some good work to try to encourage her to stay with the other two sheep, but the ewe would have nothing of it. Run over...but I was very, very pleased with Meg...especially with her not losing her temper and gripping the ewe! Tina had a spectacular outrun and the quickest run to the post (not good!).

We then made a quick decision to go and have a run at the Libanus trial (Kevin and Dai Evans trial). Three hours later we were at the start post. Sioux had the 'winning' run - to the pen...and can you guess what happened? Of course you can because this is becoming all too (embarrassingly) familiar...I failed to pen. And believe me, I was mad with myself. Yep, I let my little dog down yet again. Guilt, guilt!

Tina had a good run to the pen where Kelvin timed out ...thank goodness as I could see myself cooking for another week. I was actually willing the sheep to go in for Kelvin despite the impending cookery 'fine' but it was not to be. I am off the hook for cooking for now. Meg had a rush of blood to her head at the top of her outrun and was schooled off the field. I must admit she worked hellishly good as she was schooled off the field so I could not be too mad with her! Perhaps I should have stayed on the field and continued her run...but, I must admit, my dejection at not penning with Sioux weighed heavily on my mind. A good lesson is to be learned there...about putting disappointment out of your mind and carrying on with a positive attitude!

“Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.” ~Winston Churchill

Last week Kelvin did a 'messiah' effort on a broken fence line and a rusted gate that was held together with baling twine. The gate was so rusted it could not be opened and it was tied to the gate posts with layers and layers of twine. I am pleased to report the fence is now fixed, the gate has been replaced and now we can open and shut the gate to get between fields. YEAH! Time now to ear tag and wean lambs, and put them in fields where they can be safely contained. Which fence line to attack now is the question?