When you lose a chicken…

It was bound to happen.

I was told it would happen.

And even though I prepared myself mentally, I was still heartbroken when it happened.

Our sweet Queenie passed away. I’m not sure why, but we think it was one of those last really cold nights we got when it snowed. We warmed her listless body up, and she seemed to recuperate nicely, but the next night, when we kept her inside with us, it seems she just didn’t have enough life left in her to keep going.Our sweet little buff laced Polish went onto the great beyond, where she can scratch and cluck and eat as many worms as she likes forever and ever.

We held a sweet little funeral for her, as she was the first of our livestock to bid adieu to this life. Eliana spoke some words over her grave by the creek, and cried big tears, and mentioned something about Queenie being “a true hero” (is it wrong that this made me chuckle a little under my breath?).

Where there is death, there is also life, and we are learning many new things about this life we’ve been given, all because of this simple little homestead. I have many questions still, but I’m thankful for the lessons God is teaching me as I go.

We have lost five more chickens since Queenie died. Four of them, we believe, to hawks that live on our land. It seems to get easier as you go. But nothing is like the first time you lose one, especially a favorite of sorts. Here’s a little tribute reel I shared on Instagram a while back.

But don’t worry, there are more chicks on the way. We currently have 60 meat chickens growing up on our land (that’s a whole other story to share on another day!). But we have about 15 more on the way close to the end of wintertime. Lord, help my chicken addiction!