Everyone in homestead circles says that chickens are the gateway animal.
I can't say that they're wrong. They did something to my heart that I'm pretty sure can't change back.
When we still lived in the city, owning chickens was technically illegal. We were only allowed to keep them if their housing was 50 away from any other living structure, and our yard was so small that it was impossible at any angle. We had considered living dangerously and getting them anyway (if anyone was going to complain about their noise, we would just point toward the three, constantly-yapping-and-escaping dogs that lived next door), but we ended up waiting until we got to the homestead.
But now, in this new place, watching Andrew build the first chicken tractor was like waking up from a dream and finding it to be reality.
And then we finally, FINALLY got chickens, BECAUSE WE COULD. Our big, fluffy-butt Buff Orpington, our two obnoxiously rude, escape-artist Wyandottes, our meek Barred Rock, and our smarter-than-the-average bear Brahma rooster.
We watched them start to scratch in the dirt, murmuring in their chickeny way, and the beautiful image became more sharp. And then our young son, still so young that he doesn't speak in full sentences, started making clucking sounds like a champ, laughing in delight as their bright, intense eyes inspected him, and my heart swelled to bursting.
If I sound like I'm waxing somewhat overdramatic in my descriptions of this point in our lives, I promise it's no hyperbole. To get to the point where our kid is able to mimic chickens because he is livingwith them is just such an indication of so much good change. To get to this point involved quitting two full-time jobs, finding land several states away, selling our house, moving away from everyone we knew, and starting from scratch all over again...quite literally as we reclaim these 12 acres from the wild they were on their way to becoming.
We are just beside ourselves with joy because the dream, the hope, and the plans are now finally crystallizing into a full-color, active picture. We open the windows, and the smell of sun-warmed fields mingle with the sounds of animals, and it just feels like this is the way life is supposed to be.
And it didn't stop there. With the chickens came an unexpected rabbit buck, all spotted and surprisingly gentle. He got his own rabbit tractor ( and we're currently on the hunt for his LAYDEEZZZ).
And then came the ducks, who are probably our favorites. Their awkward, harmless way of being, the way they huddle together and dabble in the water LIKE IT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING RIGHT NOW are so endearing it's ridiculous.
So we went from 0 to 8, within the course of a week, and it's delightful. There are grass-and-bug-fed eggs cooling in the fridge, a bowl of tasty scraps waiting to be next morning's treats, active transformation enriching the land under the feet of all those pooping creatures, and a new way of life being set in place.
Now...what will next month bring???
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