troubles

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It was a free-range afternoon for my cooped-up hens, still trying to break a few bad habits.

Not only do I still have an egg eater, but now I’ve got a broody hen who is, to date, the most stubborn one I’ve ever had. She refuses to be budged from the nesting box. I had to physically pick her up and remove her, then shut the doors to the henhouse so she couldn’t march right back in and reclaim her spot.

The rest of the flock happily spread out across the lawn, scratching for bugs and nibbling fresh grass, while my broody girl stood nearby glaring at me, deeply offended that I’d interrupted her plans. With no rooster in the coop, her efforts are completely pointless…but there’s no convincing her of that.

Egg production has picked up lately, and I’m officially overflowing in eggs. Looks like I’ll be eating egg salad this week whether I want to or not. My kitchen counter is lined with baskets of fresh eggs, and now, thanks to my latest purchase, it also has one less appliance.

We’ve always had both a coffee maker and an espresso machine taking up valuable counter space, but I recently found the perfect combo machine that takes espresso pods and K-Cup pods. It’s half the size of our old coffee maker and somehow manages to do both jobs without hogging the entire counter. How did I not know this machine existed until now?

I suppose that’s how life goes. We get used to what we have, and when everything is working well enough, we stop looking for better options. Sometimes that’s contentment. Sometimes it just means we’re overdue for an upgrade.

Tim isn’t much of a fan of new gadgets, but he usually goes along with whatever gets placed in front of him, one of the many reasons we get along so well.

The weekend disappeared quickly while we hunkered down inside listening to the rain. Memorial Day parades were canceled all over because of the weather, which was disappointing, though if I’m being honest, Memorial Day often leaves me frustrated anyway.

Every year I’m reminded how many people still don’t seem to understand what the day is actually about.

People thank veterans for their service as if it’s Veterans Day. Stores advertise Memorial Day sales and summer kickoffs. Grills are fired up, flags go out, and somewhere along the way the meaning gets blurred.

But Memorial Day is about remembering those who never made it home.

Each year I’m reminded how lucky I am that it isn’t about my son. He made it home. Countless friends of his didn’t. Young men in their early twenties whose lives were cut painfully short, far from home, leaving behind parents, siblings, spouses, and children.

Can’t we give them just one day?

One day where the focus stays where it belongs.

So hiding out with my hens felt like the right place to be, away from the noise, away from the sales, away from the misunderstandings. Just me, a stubborn broody hen, a yard full of scratching chickens, baskets of eggs in the kitchen, and the steady rain outside.

Safe from the idiocy of the world…at least until next year.  

“May we never forget freedom isn’t free.” ~ Anonymous