450 Sheep Jump to Their Deaths in Turkey
Friday July 8, 2005 2:31 PM
ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) - First one sheep jumped to its death. Then stunned Turkish shepherds, who had left the herd to graze while they had breakfast, watched as nearly 1,500 others followed, each leaping off the same cliff, Turkish media reported.
In the end, 450 dead animals lay on top of one another in a billowy white pile, the Aksam newspaper said. Those who jumped later were saved as the pile got higher and the fall more cushioned, Aksam reported.
``There's nothing we can do. They're all wasted,'' Nevzat Bayhan, a member of one of 26 families whose sheep were grazing together in the herd, was quoted as saying by Aksam.
The estimated loss to families in the town of Gevas, located in Van province in eastern Turkey, tops $100,000, a significant amount of money in a country where average GDP per head is around $2,700.
``Every family had an average of 20 sheep,'' Aksam quoted another villager, Abdullah Hazar as saying. ``But now only a few families have sheep left. It's going to be hard for us.''
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I wish I could...right now...read your mind(s). Some may be thinking..."crazy sheep...always heard they were stupid animals." Others might lean a bit more towards the compassionate and think "Those sheep...such innocent creatures...and those poor families whose lives are going to be so burdened by this loss." And some of you might be thinking..."I wonder what Mark Daniel Miller might be thinking?" :) Isn't it interesting just how much like the sheep we humans often are? Whether it's looking the other way and allowing some injustice to rage on in our families that is destined to cause hardship and ruination for the descendants we one day will procreate...or turning a deaf ear to the crys for help from those around us in our everyday lives..we run...head-long and face-first...right off of the cliff. And why? For no better reason than because the Joe in front of us did. One tiny shread of thought before such action would lead any person of sane mentality to the conclusion that such action or word would lead to nothing but ruination...and not merely the ruin of our personal daily life and soul...but the ruination of all those whose lives ours touch...and all those in the future whose it will as well. How many times have we seen the man or woman on the corner...and had them walk straight to our vehicle...as we turn up the stereo, roll up our windows, and turn our heads? Didn't God promise to never give us more than we could bear? Aren't we promised that our place in God's heart is above that of the birds of the air and the flowers of the field...whom for even those He daily provides all the sustanence they require? And aren't we commanded by Christ to give the shirt off of our back in a stranger asks for our coat? Do we honestly believe that God would allow this needy person to come to us for help, allow us to give them a meager dollar or two...and then He would not provide for our need and we would go hungry? WHY?!? What is it that forces our "me" oriented lives to grow such long and deadly claws? Why is it that we can't let go of the things that bind us to this world...and thereby pull and keep us not only away from God...but at odds with Him? WHY won't we let it all go? It's promised that our flesh will buck and fight and kick and scream as we work with God to throw off anything hindering us...but isn't our God stronger that our flesh? We are so quick to buy into the lies of hell...and so quick to forget the promises that God's placed in our hearts. I beg of you...anyone who might be inclined to have read this far: cast off that which binds. And yes...I know it's a daily battle. But make a pact today to do battle daily right now. Wipe off the knees dusty from the fall...and run with full vigor and strength again. Rip out the ill-set claws of Pride, Selfishness, and Mine...and allow our Lord to fill in the cuts and tears with Love. Don't worry...I am so speaking to myself here as well...not simply wagging a finger. All of those issues I listed above...where do you think I got them from? Eh? So...join hands with me? Right now? Today? And let us do nothing but edify and encourage each other onward and upward in the ways which we must go...not deride and cripple our fellow man ever again. May God bless your journey today...and allow any and all voids within your heart to be filled with only His love, grace, and mercy. I love you...and will be praying for you daily. May God bless you richly.