The other day, I was walking in my neighbourhood and I had the opportunity to stop and visit one of my neighbour's backyards which had a poultry farm. I was interested in buying eggs but my curiosity got me in the backyard, where I paused to see the flock of chickens in their pen. There was a net fence protecting the chickens. Some were pecking at dirt, some were eating leaves. They wandered in small groups and sometimes would congregate; at times I wondered how the pecking order worked. I watched some of them for a few minutes and thought about freedom and the things that constrain our lives.
When I was young, the only thing I knew about freedom - was that I could travel wherever I wanted and say whatever I wanted. Watching these chickens, I realised that freedom is more than that. These chickens knew they had boundaries because the net was keeping them in a small space designated by their owner. They had boundaries or they had limits - but were free to roam, free to eat, free from danger. That is the important part. Perhaps being free is not always having a wide open range - but having the opportunity to live truthfully in the spaces or circles where we belong.
Belonging is really a nice thing. I could relate to the act of belonging while observing the clucking hens; how they would get together, how there was one cluck or two that would be met with a few heads turning in the same direction. It wasn't loud or dramatic, but it was steady, assured. Some hens were brave and took their places first, just like friends speak up when it was important - so the group could hear. Some hens were left, timid in courage, but still belong to the same circle. I can see these pieces of life too. Everyone brings a different value to a circle and uniqueness of the circle will remain united.
Not every hen was part of the "main" group. Some hens still roamed, and some hens even pecked away from the main flock for a bit, I understood that too. Not everyone is the same. Sometimes or even often people simply step back. In a truest sense this does not equate to rejection - sometimes people change, or just need a bit of space. I did notice that those hens would typically return to the group, and I seemed to notice the circle would typically still welcome home with providence. That is the bounty of belonging to a flock - space to be wrong while securely holding your belt in place.
Freedom without a circle can feel like nothing. Freedom without a circle can feel like danger, and belonging without freedom can feel like a cage or even a prison. Balance is critical - there needs to be freedom with breathing room inside the circle and having the courage to be yourselves and unique. By the time I left the farm I was at peace. I really could not have expected to have a lesson from a backyard. Moving forward I will try and frame my circle with caution. I will try and keep hold of the people who show up, who check in when they think I might need them, or remind me who the very best of me is. I will protect my freedom and also honour those people who help make my freedom worthwhile. At the end of the day, I still believe, a small true flock is better than an open field.
