Markdale author publishes inspirational book

February 26, 2014 · 0 Comments

Adventures on Green Pasture Farm: Scruff, a heart-touching tale of the relationship between shepherd Mary Ann Pascucci and a rejected lamb, is a book that might serve the multi-purpose of teaching a little about farm life; of encouraging persons who are different in some fashion; and restoring faith among persons who have gone astray, among other things.

It is also an easy read, probably aimed at youthful readers, but a story that several reviewers have said would appeal to “children of all ages,” and it is a true story of an experience of Markdale, ON, author Mary Ann Pascucci, 48.

Scruff, the lamb of the story, was rejected at birth by her mother. Other ewes would not adopt her. Her appearance was “scruffy,” says Mary Ann, hence the name “Scruff.”

Mary Ann, a lifetime farm woman who had never been called on to bottle-feed a lamb nor, in fact, had prior experience with sheep, acquired Scruff from her sister in 1996 and “I remember the very first day I held her in my arms as she looked up at me. She won my heart. She wasn’t the prettiest thing but she was mine.

Not only did Scruff win her heart, but the experience with the lamb inspired Mary Ann and her husband to become shepherds. Eventually, they established a flock of about 200.

“The bond grew between us as we spent so much time together. It was not until a crisis that I knew her dedication to me. When I needed her to follow me through an uncomfortable situation, she kept her eyes on me and led the flock (to safety),” says the author in the book.

There had been two crises on that dark and increasingly wind-swept late autumn night. After the flock had been safely moved to shelter from the pasture through muddy areas from a recent rain, Mary Ann’s son Isaac, who had rear-guarded the herd, announced that one sheep had remained behind, alone somewhere in the storm-swept pasture.

With the flock secure in a sheltered enclosure, how to find and rescue a single lost sheep in the dark? Scruff, says the book and says Mary Ann in an interview, was “waiting at the gate” to follow her shepherd on the mission. The final sheep was located by Scruff and rescued.

Mary Ann draws analogies between her experiences and that of the biblical parable of the good shepherd, in which the shepherd secured the flock in the fold and went in search of the one lost sheep.

But she also takes a broader view.

“In whatever situation you may find yourself, at school, at home, work, wherever and you feel discouraged and hopeless, keep your eyes on the Shepherd, Jesus.

“He will lift you up and take care of you, because He loves you. There is hope. And as you put your trust in the Good Shepherd, it will not matter what you go through because He will bring you safely home. He will never leave your side.”

She quotes Scripture: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.” (Psalm 3:5, 6.)

Mary Ann was raised in a devout family on a cash-crop farm and says she made her commitment at the age of 12. Eventually, along with her husband, she became shepherd to a flock of 200 sheep, she said in an interview.

After about a quarter century farming in the Keswick, ON, area, development pressures on farmland forced a move. “The flock went to other farms,” and they moved to the Markdale area in 2011, where they now operate an organic farm

At this writing, the book is available online from Amazon, Barnes and Noble. It is being promoted by Indianapolis-based Bohlsen Group. It will be introduced at four or five U.S. locations as well as at Kitchener this year.

By Wes Keller