All Worn Out

"I have led you forty years in the wilderness; your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandal has not worn out on your foot."  Deuteronomy 29:5

When reading about the exodus of the Children of Israel from Egypt, a miracle happened other than the parting of the Red Sea that we don't often think about. The Bible tells us that in the FORTY years that the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, their clothes and shoes never wore out!  That is a miracle indeed.  Don't you wish your stuff lasted that long?

Many things we have wear out quickly.  In our disposable society, things aren't built to last anymore. They wear out, we throw them away, and we purchase new items.  Some items are truly quality built goods, but repeated use just wears them out.  Rosie's halter is a good example.  The other day when I went to get her out in the pasture to put her in the temporary paddock in our yard to eat, I noticed that her halter had broken.

All worn out

The ring on her halter underneath her chin completely wore out.  That is quite a feat when you realize that the ring is made of metal.  There is a chain that used to run through the ring and when you would grab the chain and pull it, it would tighten up on her, letting her know that she should follow you.

Time for a new halter

The picture tells you the story.  I put the chain back in the ring to show how it works.  Each time that Rosie reaches down to eat grass, the chain rubs against the ring and the friction eats away a tiny bit of metal.  Repeat that process many, many times each day and eventually the chain wears a hole in the ring.  It takes a long time, but not 40 years.  I wish the halter would last 4 years, but it doesn't.

At this point the halter is useless and the only thing to do is to purchase a new one. Tricia went to the local Feed Store and purchased a new halter for Rosie.  Where her old one was brown, Tricia decided to get a bright red one.  She also decided to try a new style to see if this one will last longer.  We took the old one off and put the new one on.  Here's Rosie modeling her new red halter.

Rosie's new halter

Here is a side view.  The ring is a different style and is thicker.  We'll see if this halter will last the test of time.

I checked Daisy and Amy's halter for wear.  Daisy's looks fine, but Amy's is showing some serious wear and will soon fail.  That's just part of life.  Just like the tires on our automobiles and the soles on our shoes, everything has a finite amount of mileage before they wear out.  Our bodies are no exception.  It's not a pleasant thought to think about, but it is true.