Chickens

Beloved:

    I ordered our first 9 chicks yesterday.  In the next three days they will hatch somewhere in Missouri and then be Fed-Ex’ed to the farm supply store in Ellettsville on Friday morning so I can bring them home Friday afternoon.  The first day is settling them in and introducing them to the cat and dogs, mostly the cat.  My chicken book has many tips about explaining to the cat, these are pets, they are not food.  

    My son, Ben, carried their brooding crib, bedding, heat lamp, and feeding supplies from the garage to my home office which will be their nursery for the next eight weeks.  In the meantime we have to build their outdoor coop.   We’ll have some for laying and some for meat, though Carl is in charge of the coop to table process.   Since we’ll have no roosters I’m going to name our coop The Convent and watch them keep community.  

    Of course my mama is in heaven rolling her eyes.  She grew up on a farm and hating chicken work most of all.  Her mama rolled her eyes one summer when I told her I was canning tomatoes, “Honey, don’t you know the IGA sells tomatoes already in the can?  

   Even if they are rolling their eyes and looking at each other knowingly, keeping hens makes me feel them a little nearer as I go about the same chores they did.  it also makes me feel a closer to God when I’m caring for creatures, watching their ways and receiving their gifts.  

    No doubt I’ll have lots more to write about them in the next few weeks.  For now, here are some stock pictures.  ~ peace & prayers, pastor annette  

Polish Crested

Cuckoo Maran