Please tell me that I am not the only one who finds something serene and calming about watching chickens forage around in the back yard.
This past spring, when we first brought home our six tiny little chicks, I had no idea that they would provide me with such a thought-provoking view. One day late this summer I was sitting watching them out the back door, when I suddenly realized something. My mind had slowed down, my anxiety level had decreased, and my breathing was calmer... All that just from watching chickens roam around and do what chickens do!
My husband hit the nail on the head, when he said, "It makes you think of a simple life." That was it - there was something about the scene that hearkened back to a simpler time, an era gone by when life was... slower.
Today we have cell phones clamoring constantly, computers keeping us up to date 24/7, jobs that take us away from our home and family, and countless other obligations - not all of them avoidable - vying for our limited time. We don't even have time to think about simplicity. Our lives have become so over-complicated that we think it's the norm to be on the go from morning till night. The mere thought of having time to just sit and relax makes us laugh and say, "Yeah. Wouldn't that be nice?"
Well, I'll tell you... It IS nice. And I am so thankful to be able to do it. Not every day, mind you, because life does get busy sometimes. But every chance I get. I love the scene out my back door. It's difficult to describe, but there's something fundamental about it, something that makes me think of my grandparents' farms or the pioneers' homesteads. Something that connects me to God's creation, to nature. Something that reminds me of my heritage, of where I came from. And that there is still simplicity in life.
I know that not everyone lives in the country, and that not everyone has a good view out their windows. But I hope that we all have someone or someplace that calms us, that helps us relax, that relieves the stress for a bit, that gives us a glimpse of the simple life.
But if you'd like to... Come on over! We'll have some iced tea and sit in some lawn chairs and watch the chickens scratch and peck.
This past spring, when we first brought home our six tiny little chicks, I had no idea that they would provide me with such a thought-provoking view. One day late this summer I was sitting watching them out the back door, when I suddenly realized something. My mind had slowed down, my anxiety level had decreased, and my breathing was calmer... All that just from watching chickens roam around and do what chickens do!
My husband hit the nail on the head, when he said, "It makes you think of a simple life." That was it - there was something about the scene that hearkened back to a simpler time, an era gone by when life was... slower.
Today we have cell phones clamoring constantly, computers keeping us up to date 24/7, jobs that take us away from our home and family, and countless other obligations - not all of them avoidable - vying for our limited time. We don't even have time to think about simplicity. Our lives have become so over-complicated that we think it's the norm to be on the go from morning till night. The mere thought of having time to just sit and relax makes us laugh and say, "Yeah. Wouldn't that be nice?"
Well, I'll tell you... It IS nice. And I am so thankful to be able to do it. Not every day, mind you, because life does get busy sometimes. But every chance I get. I love the scene out my back door. It's difficult to describe, but there's something fundamental about it, something that makes me think of my grandparents' farms or the pioneers' homesteads. Something that connects me to God's creation, to nature. Something that reminds me of my heritage, of where I came from. And that there is still simplicity in life.
I know that not everyone lives in the country, and that not everyone has a good view out their windows. But I hope that we all have someone or someplace that calms us, that helps us relax, that relieves the stress for a bit, that gives us a glimpse of the simple life.
But if you'd like to... Come on over! We'll have some iced tea and sit in some lawn chairs and watch the chickens scratch and peck.