Last Chicken Standing
Today I am grateful for open windows and ceiling fans. I am also grateful for my experiences growing up on a farm.
When I talked to my mom on Sunday for Mother's Day, the topic of chickens came up. Mom informed me that she is now down to one chicken. She has only had a few for some time now, but apparently the winter was hard on them, leaving the last chicken standing. She may end up getting a few chickens again, but she may not. It could be the end of an era.
I got off the phone with her and thought about this. She has had chickens on the farm for six decades.We grew up with fresh eggs. Some were even still warm when we would gather them each day. And you haven't had fresh chicken until you have had chicken for supper that was still clucking at breakfast time. That may sound cruel to some, but if anything growing up on a farm taught me respect for life and how there truly is a circle of life, a purpose for all living things.
Some of the chicken chores were drudgery, but I bet every one of my siblings has several chicken memories to recall--from the baby chicks arriving in the spring to the butchering in mid-summer, to cleaning out the chicken coop each year.
Butchering chickens was a family affair, though I recall some of the boys getting out of it because they were doing the milking. We would start early in the morning, so Mom would call upstairs to wake us up. Mom and Dad would do the toughest stuff. That started with cutting their heads off and finished with dressing them to be eaten or frozen. In between, we got to help with plucking the feathers. I can't say I dreaded the job, but I can't say it was fun either. It was a job, and it was best when it was done.
My most pleasant chicken memories were when the baby chicks would arrive in the spring, with their baby chirping and their cuteness.
So we are down to the last chicken standing. I wonder how many hundreds and hundreds of chickens my mom has helped raise, tend to, and butcher over these years. It is an impressive number no doubt.
I am grateful for the memories and the life lessons that came with feathers on.
When I talked to my mom on Sunday for Mother's Day, the topic of chickens came up. Mom informed me that she is now down to one chicken. She has only had a few for some time now, but apparently the winter was hard on them, leaving the last chicken standing. She may end up getting a few chickens again, but she may not. It could be the end of an era.
I got off the phone with her and thought about this. She has had chickens on the farm for six decades.We grew up with fresh eggs. Some were even still warm when we would gather them each day. And you haven't had fresh chicken until you have had chicken for supper that was still clucking at breakfast time. That may sound cruel to some, but if anything growing up on a farm taught me respect for life and how there truly is a circle of life, a purpose for all living things.
Some of the chicken chores were drudgery, but I bet every one of my siblings has several chicken memories to recall--from the baby chicks arriving in the spring to the butchering in mid-summer, to cleaning out the chicken coop each year.
Butchering chickens was a family affair, though I recall some of the boys getting out of it because they were doing the milking. We would start early in the morning, so Mom would call upstairs to wake us up. Mom and Dad would do the toughest stuff. That started with cutting their heads off and finished with dressing them to be eaten or frozen. In between, we got to help with plucking the feathers. I can't say I dreaded the job, but I can't say it was fun either. It was a job, and it was best when it was done.
My most pleasant chicken memories were when the baby chicks would arrive in the spring, with their baby chirping and their cuteness.
So we are down to the last chicken standing. I wonder how many hundreds and hundreds of chickens my mom has helped raise, tend to, and butcher over these years. It is an impressive number no doubt.
I am grateful for the memories and the life lessons that came with feathers on.
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