Today’s Word from Deacon Amy…
It’s been a while since I’ve shared a story from our busy little farm. There has been a lot of activity over the summer with animals coming and going, and fairs and shows all over the state. I’m sure there is more than one tale that I could share. This story, in particular, got me pondering our lives together, though.
We have a young female duck who started sitting on a clutch of eggs in the corner of the stall around the end of August. Eggs from this particular breed of duck, the Muscovy, take 35 days to hatch (most duck eggs take 28, if you’re curious). It takes a lot of patience and dedication for a hen to hatch eggs. They sit on the nest day and night, rarely even getting up to eat or drink.
About three weeks into her sitting on this nest, one of our chicken hens decided to join her. Apparently, the chicken was not patient enough to sit on her own eggs (which would only take 21 days to hatch). Instead, she decided to join the brooding already in progress.
Amazingly, the Muscovy hen allowed the chicken to sit with her. For two weeks, they sat on the nest together. Sometimes they took turns, sometimes they sat side by side, and sometimes they were practically sitting on top of each other. For two weeks, they shared the responsibilities of caring for the duck eggs.
And after 14 days (or 35 for the duck), it happened! Two adorable little ducklings hatched. The mothers were both very proud. Even at this point, the Muscovy allowed the chicken to share the responsibilities of raising the young with her, even while she chased all the other birds away.
It seems to me that maybe we could learn something from these feathered friends. The Muscovy could have scolded the chicken and chased her away. She could have even relocated her nest to a different corner. Instead, she allowed the chicken to move right in with her, and join the family-in-progress.
What would it look like if we allowed others to join us on our journeys? Or, better yet, if we invited others to join us? I think we can all feel a little lonely at times, especially when coming out of more than two years of pandemic isolation. It’s good to share the journey. We are meant to share the journey. After all, we know that God created us to be in relationship with others.
I suppose God never really intended for ducks and chickens to sit side by side on a nest, but what a beautiful reminder it is, that sometimes we all need a friend to sit with us.
Blessings, my friends,
Deacon Amy
