Flo is a surprising animal, she hid for nearly a year under the house, and seems now to be more social and confident by the day. I have rarely seen an animal evolve as she has, she reminds me of Simon, although the two are quite different. The boys from St. John’s Residence For Boys in Brooklyn come from some hard places – their stories are hard to hear, hard to bear. Few of them have ever been around animals like Red or Simon and I was astonished to see Flo sitting in the middle of the yard, surrounded by these young men, all strangers, many of whom just wanted to touch her and pet, she was purring like a small engine.

Two months ago, she would have vanished at the sight of the first van, she never left these boys as they moved through the farm, she sat in their laps, let them stroke and pet her, and I see that Bedlam Farm has worked it’s magic on yet another animal – it has happened here again and again, animals grow into their natural selves, they form a Peaceable Kingdom, they are socialized into a state of connection and affection. Flo is a remarkable creature.