The following is taken from “Tales from Heritage Farm” written by Wenda and Randall Grabau.
Huffing and sputtering out her troubles, Hildy listed all of the things she expected to encounter that day. “I’ll hunt and get pecked by Annie. I will peck and be nipped by Dolly. After scratching a while, I’ll get chased and jabbed at by Little Red. Once I lay my big brown egg, Sophie will pick on me. A hen’s lot in life is a weary one. I’ve been cooped up all my life and nobody likes me,” she wailed.
“I do,” said Frieda.
“Yeah, but you don’t count,” she answered caustically.
“Oh, … I see,” retreated Frieda.
A brief moment of silence passed when Frieda recharged and blurted, “Well, maybe if you can’t change the others, you might try to change yourself… your attitude.”
“Yeah, well, how do you propose I do that?” snapped Hildy.
“I’ve tried a little exercise,” Frieda encouraged. “Whenever I think thoughts that weigh me down like yours do, I ponder some ‘praise thought.’”
“Praise thought? What do you mean?” interrupted Hildy.
“If I find a meaty oat or a tasty seed, I say, ‘Praise-the-Lord!’ Should I find a patch of weeds or fragrant green blades of grass to eat, I say, ‘Praise-the-Lord!’ When our rooster calls us each day I think, ‘Praise the Lord that Maximillian had to wake up first while I could catch a couple of more winks.’”
“Oh, now, Frieda, you’ve gone too far. That noisy fellow is such a loud, arrogant sort. Don’t you hear him saying each day, ‘I’m-so-good-for-you’?” she clucked with sarcasm that Frieda could not ignore.
“You are wrong there, Hildy. Is that really what you think he is saying? You had better clean out your ears. He’s not saying that at all,” insisted Frieda.
“What’s that you say?” Hildy cocked her head to hear better what her neighbor had just said.
“Come on over here and let me check your ears,” urged Frieda. “You’re not going to peck at me, are you?” asked Hildy defensively.
“Of course not. Come on… ha! Just as I thought,” she commented diagnostically. “You’ve got feathers in your ears. Let me wipe them out for you.” Gently Frieda feather-dusted over each of Hildy’s little ears with her wing feathers. “There now,” she asked, “do you hear better?”
“Don’t talk so loudly,” shouted Hildy.
“Cock-a-doodle-doo——God-is-good-to-you—!” interrupted Maximillian.
“Oh-h-h, he’s louder than before. He really did say, ‘God-is-good-to-you.’ Has he been saying that all along?” she asked in astonishment.
“He sure has,” was the reply.
“Well, I guess I stand corrected. Praise-the-Lord!! Maybe I should think more praising thoughts. It might help. A hen’s lot in life still isn’t easy though,” added Hildy.
“No, but a little praise to God goes a long way to lift anyone’s spirit. We can all face each new day with a better perspective and … cluck…cluck…cluck…squawk!!
“Oh, pardon me,” Frieda blushed, “I just laid an egg. Praise-the-Lord!”
The Bible says in Psalm 118:24, “This is the day which the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
You may have a list of hardships or misunderstandings to deal with like Hildy did. Talking it over with a friend and exercising praise to the Lord can turn the tide for you as it did for Hildy. And when you hear, “Cock-a-doodle-doo—!” listen closely. In rooster vernacular, translated it means, “God-is-good-to-you!” Respond as Hildy did and “Praise-the-Lord!”
Note: Any resemblance to persons in this article is purely coincidental and not intended to reflect on any one person… or chicken.
Asparagus Quiche
9-inch unbaked pie shell
3 eggs
1 ½ cup grated cheese (Swiss & cheddar combined)
½ pound fresh asparagus pieces cooked, or 1 – 10 oz. package frozen asparagus, cooked
1-13 oz. can evaporated milk
milk
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
Dash of nutmeg
Sprinkle cheese in bottom of pie shell. Arrange asparagus over cheese. Beat eggs slightly. Add enough milk to evaporated milk to make 2 cups. Combine with eggs, seasonings; pour over asparagus. Bake at 375°F about 45 minutes our till knife comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting. Serves 6.