Colleen Scott ♀️

(Tribute to Shien O’Shea, Kokowei) Colleen had lived in the rural outskirts of Leyde for over a decade. Without power, she relied on her knowledge of the land and her faith to keep going. The nights were eerily silent, the stars overwhelmingly bright. No distant hum of traffic or glow of city lights in the distance. Power, transportation, even connection to the outside world—suddenly gone, but it hadn’t taken everything. Her farm still stood. The irrigation flowed. And as long as she could work the land, she would find a way to endure. Colleen saw it as God’s grace—a blessing in a world now full of uncertainty. Standing at the edge of her irrigation channel, Colleen paused to take in the rhythmic flow of water. Their soft bleating broke her trance, a small reminder that life still moved forward, even after everything had changed. An old friend had arrived two days earlier, towing a battered livestock trailer behind his old truck. Kenneth wasn’t a man to ask for help, but he had a quiet humility that reminded Colleen of why they’d been friends for so long. “Don’t have enough gas,” Kenny had said as he handed her the keys. “You’ll have more use of it than me. I’ll go the rest on foot. Someone’s got to help in the city.” Colleen had seen the wear in his eyes, the weight of too many sacrifices made too quickly. “May His hedge of protection be upon you,” she’d said. They’d worked together to unload the animals: goats, a few sheep, and a calf. “I couldn’t bring them all,” he’d admitted, his voice low. “Had to slaughter most of the herd. Salted what I could for the road ahead.”