TEMPLE GRANDIN CHARMS THE ACADEMICS
by Sarah Carey
The new calves (one hour old)
lie in sand beds, lazy-eyed
watch from their dust
as someone explains how we feed,
vaccinate, separate. Temple bends down,
grabs a fist full of sand,
lets the grains slip
through her long fingers.
Sand beds are the gold standard
for dairy cows, one scientist claims
speaking of best practices
all jockey to share and explain.
It starts to rain.
Our boots crunch through gravel
to gargantuan trucks. We load up,
move from barns to beef pasture
where our field of experts widens.
I shift between them, optimize my lens
for expressions to take back, angling
for that perspective I might have missed.
Rapid movement drives grazing animals away,
she says, approaching the bulls’ pen.
.
A Brahmin leans in. Temple inches a hand
through the barbed fence, strokes his chin.
—For Temple Grandin
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