Richard Austin - Its the Little Things: The Pocket Pigs Guide to Living Your Best Life (Inspiration Book, Gift Book, Life Lessons, Mini Pigs)

Its The Little Things

The Pocket Pigs Guide to

LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE

Photographs by Richard Austin

workman publishing new york

Contents

Consider the Pig

A s E. B. White taught us in Charlottes Web, one should never underestimate the brilliance of a pig. And we humans have a lot to learn from them.

In an effort to be our best selves, we often reach so high that we forget to connect with the simple pleasures in life that truly make it worth living. But life on the farm is different. The slower pace, the routine, the fresh air, and the community of creatures big and small offer a perspective shift. As the Pocket Pigs of Pennywell Farm know, sometimes the littlest moments can harbor the greatest happiness.

These petite porcines may be unique in their stature, but they share the attributes of pigs of all sizes: They take care of one another, theyre curious, they value a calm, tidy space (despite rumors to the contrary), and they relish the opportunity to learn something new. May we strive to meet every opportunitybig and smallwith as much wonder, intelligence, and grace as the Pocket Pigs of Pennywell Farm.

You are allowed to be both a masterpiece and a work in progress, simultaneously.

Sophia Bush

Live Life to the Fullest

I n his book The Whole Hog, Johannesburg Zoo director and biologist Lyall Watson writes, I know of no other animals [who] are more consistently curious, more willing to explore new experiences, more ready to meet the world with open-mouthed enthusiasm. Pigs, I have discovered, are incurable optimists and get a big kick out of just being. So the next time an opportunity comes your way, why not go whole hog, as they say? Approaching life with joy, wonder, and an open heart is a great place to begin.

In the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

Kahlil Gibran

A champion is defined not by their wins but by how they can recover when they fall.

Serena Williams

Make Your House a Home

P igs dont need much from their dwellings, just a spa (i.e., mud puddle), clean water, and a roof over their headsshady in summer and toasty in winter. Like some humans, they also value coziness, and design their space to accommodate a communal lifestyle. That means a nest for pig piling and cuddling, but not a messcontrary to what some popular idioms may suggest.

Find out who you are and do it on purpose.

Dolly Parton

Dive Right In

T hey may not be able to fly, but guess what? Pigs can swim! Big Major Cay, aka Pig Beach, in the Bahamas, boasts a small colony of swimming feral pigs who are known to cavort with tourists frolicking in the waters. Legends abound about their originwhether they were abandoned by a shipwreck or escaped from sailors who left them on the island, intending to eat them later. But theyre not the only ones... landlubber pigs have been known to swim to safety during floods.

An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered.

Gilbert K. Chesterton

Make Some Noise

T hough real pigs may not be as articulate as Wilbur in Charlottes Web, they do rely on verbal communication, using various types of grunts and squeals to tell other pigs how they feel. Some studies have shown that pigs can make up to twenty distinct sounds, which convey a wide range of information about their emotional state. And they are not afraid to make their voices heardthey can scream at volumes of up to 130 decibels. For comparison, a jet engine clocks in at 120 decibels, and a motorcycle maxes out at 88no wonder a Harley-Davidson is called a hog!

Be strong, be fearless, be beautiful. And believe that anything is possible when you have the right people there to support you.

Misty Copeland

Fortune Favors the Bold

I n Chinese culture, pigs are the last of twelve animals in the zodiac. A symbol of wealth, they are seen to represent good fortune, as well as honesty, abundance, and happiness. Those born in the year of the pig are believed to be intelligent, generous, curious, noble, and creative.

Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.

Henri J. M. Nouwen

When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, its your world for the moment.

Georgia OKeeffe

Be a Good Listener

S ay what? Just as pigs have very keen olfactory senses, they are also known for their sensitive hearing. Within a week of being born, pigs learn and will respond to their own names, and their moms communicate with them verbally as soon as they are born. Loud or high-pitched sounds will startle a pig, and long exposure to noise will stress them out, so its important to speak softly and move carefully around pigs to keep them calm and comfortable.

Every day is perfect because theres no other day!... Every moment, every breath, every sound, every encounter is a gift. You bloody well better enjoy it.

James Cromwell