The property was maybe a forty-five minute drive from my grandparents’ house in the St. Louis city limits, but the contrast between the expansive country acreage and the tidy urban parcel led me to believe that we must have circled the moon and stars to get there. I can’t even remember the color of theContinue reading “Outbuildings”
Tag Archives: chickens
A Little Toast to Hope
Yesterday, I was having a good day, which really wouldn’t seem extraordinary except there just haven’t been a whole lot of them lately. A year ago, I had just lost 22 pounds. My hip didn’t hurt anymore, and I was a little closer to keeping up with the boys. All of the big kids wereContinue reading “A Little Toast to Hope”
A Chicken Gets Her Wings
Love, young love, I hope you are well. At least we now both Have a story to tell. —Keaton Henson, “Sarah Minor” I should have known by the way she spun in a circle as she moved among the pine shavings, even somersaulting as she crashed into the other chicks. Sometimes, she kept one eyeContinue reading “A Chicken Gets Her Wings”
You Always Did Love the Ocean
It was hard to discern where the brilliant blue sky became the ocean’s choppy waves, where the hope looked more like fear. From his little spot in the Florida sun, my dad sends me things to read: funny and interesting things…things that he has found on the internet or in the newspaper, things that heContinue reading “You Always Did Love the Ocean”
Fostering Words: Love Isn’t Enough, But At Least It’s Something
As a fresh spring chicken of a foster parent, I was given by one of my dearest friends a candy-pink shirt with the words, “Love is Not Enough” boldly stated for all to see. This puzzled me just a bit. “Hmm…we’ll see”, I thought to myself, as I wore it with pride. That was aboutContinue reading “Fostering Words: Love Isn’t Enough, But At Least It’s Something”
Snow on the Corn and Other Things that Just Don’t Seem Right
I guess you only get so many chances, at least in this life. Nancy, my favorite chicken, went quietly in the early morning cold of All Soul’s Day. She had never really been the same since she had survived the raccoon attack last winter, though she tried her best to keep up with the othersContinue reading “Snow on the Corn and Other Things that Just Don’t Seem Right”
Darkness and Light
My mom sent a photo. It’s hard even to think of my parents as senior citizens, though I am nearly one myself. The image shows participants in a charity race on a bright day, and front and center are my dad and my mom, both reflecting the sun, smiling and looking well…astoundingly so. They areContinue reading “Darkness and Light”
Trying to be a Farm Girl
My nine-year-old and a couple of his buddies were loading into our car after baseball practice. Before I had started the engine, he surprised me with what he had to tell his friends: “My mom’s going to play stupid ‘Follaton Wood’.” He neglected to tell his teammates that he has been asking for that songContinue reading “Trying to be a Farm Girl”
Circles
“Yesterday, a child came out to wonder”. The voice in my head pleaded, “Don’t cry…don’t cry…don’t cry on your way to the post office.” I had been unexpectedly emotional since the early morning phone call from the postmaster letting me know that my new chickens had arrived. Chicken keeping, like most everything else, has aContinue reading “Circles”
Raccoon Vs. Chicken Vs. Me
As far as I could see, the gravel road stretched into the expanse of the dreary midday. The road seemed to lead to nowhere, but I felt as though I knew where I was going. I must have waited at the edge of the road for at least twenty minutes. The wild grasses were soContinue reading “Raccoon Vs. Chicken Vs. Me”
