Now where was I? Oh yes, when I was a little girl my father brought home a box of chicks for the family to raise for eggs and to maybe eat. You can imagine how I felt about the eating part, shudder. Well there were a lot of chicks but this one chick just caught my eye and I decided that I loved it. My dad being the softie that he was told me that I could have this one to raise for my own; if it turned out to be a hen I could gather the eggs for the family and if it was a rooster it could watch out for all of the other chickens.
My little chick grew rapidly and before long it was obvious that she was a hen so I named her Henrietta. Now Henrietta seemed happy pecking around the chicken yard and roosting in her hen house but sometimes it is hard to tell with chickens. As she got old enough to be laying eggs my dad told me to keep an eye out and check everyday to see if there was one in her roost. I checked everyday but not an egg was to be found. I loved Henrietta; she was such a pretty little hen, all white and silky with her sparkling eyes. When I would come into the chicken yard she would run right up to me and rub her head against my legs. Sometimes I would sit down on a stump in the yard and she would jump onto my lap and listen while I told her about my day. No really, she actually seemed to be listening and sometimes she would cluck at me like she was trying to tell me something.
The days went by and still no eggs from Henrietta and she didn't seem as happy anymore. Lately when I came into the chicken yard she didn't come running but just stood by the wire fence looking into the neighbor's yard. Now our neighbor was a fine friendly lady who just happened to keep peacocks for pets. What crazy beautiful creatures they were with their loud voices and pretty feathers. Well Henrietta just seemed to be obsessed with these creatures, she could see them in their pens from the chicken yard and would stand and stare at them for the longest time. For some reason I felt that the peacocks made her feel bad about being a chicken. Didn't my beautiful white silky feathered Henrietta know how beautiful she was?
If things went on they way they were, I worried that Henrietta would get sadder and never be happy enough to lay any eggs. I worried that if she didn't lay eggs my dad would start thinking of her as supper. There was no way I was going to eat my friend!
The next time I went into the chicken yard I walked right over to Henrietta and scooped her up onto my lap and told her we were going to have a chat. I said," Henrietta my sweet hen I have to tell you a crazy story. I was visiting our neighbor Mrs. Pennybone, yes we do have interesting names around here don't we? Anyhow Mrs Pennybone was telling me how her beautiful peacocks had been acting sort of sad lately and she had been trying to figure out why. She said the answer came to her the other day when she noticed you standing next to the fence watching her peacocks. You see they have been watching you too and wishing that they could be as beautiful as you are. Now Mrs Pennybone had a nice chat with those peacocks of hers and let them know that as beautiful as you are they also are beautiful. That all living things are no more and no less beautiful than another, that we are all beautiful and should be joyful. Now Henrietta I sure do hope you haven't been feeling less than beautiful and if so I hope this conversation has put your mind at ease. I love you my sweet hen."
Henrietta stared at me the whole time I was talking with those sparkling eyes of hers and when I had finished, she lifted her head high, shook out her silky feathers and jumped from my lap. That beautiful little hen went a pecking away around the chicken yard full of energy once again. As I stood to leave she ran over and rubbed her head against my legs as if to let me know she understood. Don't you know the very next morning when I checked Henrietta's roost there was a beautiful egg waiting for me. Henrietta Hornbuckle
