From Bother to Blessing

Ask the animals, and they will teach you,
    or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you;
or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
    or let the fish in the sea inform you.
Which of all these does not know
    that the hand of the Lord has done this?

In his hand is the life of every creature
    and the breath of all humanity.  -- Job 12:7-10

If you have ever wondered what it would be like to own a goat, now is your chance: On the tiny Italian island of Alicudi, goats are free for the taking -- as long as you have the means to transport them to your home.

The volcanic island off the coast of Sicily is roughly two square miles with just 100 residents, and ordinarily the goat population has matched the human population: 100 goats to 100 residents. But after a farmer released his animals on the island some 20 years ago, the goat population has grown to more than 600 and local officials have declared the overpopulation a nuisance.

While the goats once kept to the island's steep cliffs, they are now wandering into residents' yards, gardens, and even homes. As Mayor Ricardo Gullo recently stated, "Six hundred goats have been counted; the island is really small, so that is really too many."

Interested goat-seekers need to submit an official request this month and pay a $17 postage fee. Once approved, they will have 15 days to catch as many goats as they like and then find a boat to transport the goats off the island.

Alicudi is one of the primary Aeolian islands, with no hotels and just one bar. The island is about a three-hour boat ride from Sicily, and visitors get around on the island by foot or via donkeys or mules.

According to Gullo, the Adopt-A-Goat program is his effort to turn a nuisance into a blessing: "In my belief, we must always intervene in nature with soft feet," Gullo said. "I hope, and in this I am comforted by the experts, that we have made the best possible choice and that these goats will live a happy life."

As you ponder whether a trip to Italy is in your future, how might you apply this story to your own experiences? Where are the irritants in your life that might be a blessing to someone else?