The musings of a wandergeselle about faith, literature, music, dancing, culture, food, travels, art, fashion, photography, life experiences, and everything in-between from journée to journée.
So, Chick-Chick’s love story has an unexpected twist – she already found a new love. Yay! And I really thought she’s going to be single for a looooong time. lol For the backstory of her love life, you may read it here.
The Black Knight
Who’s the new flame, then? I call him “Black Knight” because his legs are all black, and he’s a fierce-looking rooster. He’s also way younger than Chick, but very assertive and has an air of authority.
He’s also very protective, but at the same time gives Chick the freedom to roam around all by herself. He may not be the typical dashing prince, but he sure has the aura of a knight in shining armor. Just perfect for Chick who’s a damsel in distress. 😉
Boosting Egg Production
This means only one thing for us – egg production will continue. So far, Chick laid 10 eggs already (all thanks to Black Knight). We left 1 egg in her nest so she will lay eggs in 1 location only thinking her nest wasn’t disrupted. Though 1 egg was eaten by a rat in her previous nest.
Will cook some of these tomorrow to assess egg quality i.e. color of yolk, hardness of shell, etc. 👍👍
I am currently playing the role of an animal behaviorist to learn more about chickens. lol My findings are quite interesting actually. For one, hens have this maternal instinct to protect their eggs, so finding a good spot to lay their eggs on is crucial.
Finding The Right Location
She tried 3 locations and the 3rd one was the most difficult to find. Maybe she realized that after 2 failed attempts at protecting her nest, she had to find a spot that was completely hidden.
So, how did we find the 3rd nest? My sister followed her around, and she saw Chick go under a sakolin, which we use to cover the water pumps. Voila, in between the water pumps, we found the eggs.
Why Poultry Farming
I did ask God why He placed a desire on my husband’s heart to pursue poultry farming in 2021. This is actually the reason why we came here to my hometown last year to explore opportunities in poultry production.
When my husband told me his plan, I suggested to him that we ask my parents if it’s okay to utilize a portion of our farm for poultry production. When we got here and did a site inspection, my husband and I decided that it will need a lot of work in order to get it started.
This was actually one of his reasons for deciding to work abroad. He wants to be in charge of financing the poultry project, and he wants me to oversee and manage it. I believe this is what God has planned all along. I’ve already been doing my research on poultry farming, which started last year since my husband doesn’t have the time to do it.
I was able to find a lot of online resources already on poultry farming including choosing the chicken breed, making the poultry house, preparing the chicken feed, increasing egg production, and marketing live chickens, dressed chickens, and eggs.
All I did last year was conduct research, and this year, we started preparing a portion of the project site. Then the surprise came later this year – a rogue hen grazed our garden. It’s as if God was telling me that it is about time I apply what I learned. No escaping God’s will, eh? 😉
And indeed, here I am taking care of this rogue hen, and God also provided a rooster. Although I might buy the rooster from my nephew because he’s the original owner. 😊
I never planned any of this to happen, but God made them happen. I just did what the Spirit asked me to do and kind of just went along with how things played out.
All I am praying for now is for my nephew to keep the Black Knight so he would stay with Chick forever. lol Indeed, God (love) moves in mysterious ways. Oftentimes, it will just come when you least expect it. ❤️
The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” – Genesis 2:18
Found this bookmark inside a Bible that belonged to my late grandma – such a beautiful reminder. 🙂❤️🙏
I oftentimes wonder why life sometimes has a funny way of mocking us. Just when hubby decided to go back to the city and I was left here in the province, Chick (our rogue hen) found herself a dashing young rooster owned by my nephew. They’re so smitten with one another, and they just seem inseparable. I was jealous, of course.
Maybe God is recreating Noah’s Ark here at home by giving us a pair (male and female) of every creature.
We named the rooster Chuck, and though he’s quite very young for Chick, he’s very protective of her and provides her with whatever bit of food he can scour in the garden. Of course, as with most love stories, theirs resulted in Chick getting pregnant.
The firstborn that will end up in the pan. Sorry, Chick. Don’t worry, we will leave your last 2 eggs to hatch so they can keep you company.
Picked the pineapple from the garden, it didn’t come out of the hen along with the eggs (I just want to be crystal clear on this). Hmmm, pwede na pala gumawa ng Pininyahang Manok. Unfortunately, Chick is already a beloved pet. So, she’s safe from the cooking pot.
Unfortunately, their ending wasn’t a fairytale, but a tragedy. When Chick started laying eggs, Chuck’s nowhere to be found. I’m not sure if he’s deserted her, my nephew put him in a cage, he’s found a new hen, or he’s been sold already (and eaten?). Chick’s back to her solitary self again. *sigh*
What’s The Moral Lesson Of The Story, Tin?
So the mockery was, am I seeing my very own love story being played out by Chick and Chuck? Although my husband leaving me here is not an abandonment, and there are also a lot of married couples who were successful in their marriages despite having a long distance relationship.
My separation anxiety just couldn’t accept him being far away though his leaving has a valid reason. I felt like this was God’s way of reminding me that being alone is okay, and love is not about insisting on one’s way. It always, always endures and perseveres.
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
No, I wasn’t letting go as a wife. Love is at the very core of Christianity, and if I love my husband enough, then I should not let go. If I did let go, it was to be free from my own fears and to let God reign over them. As of late, I am always reminded by the Bible verses that in the end times, people will be lovers of self. If we are entering the end times as some prophets are saying, then we have to watch out for how the world would tempt us to conform when it comes to self-preservation.
“You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money.” 2 Timothy 3:1-3
Self-preservation is loving and putting oneself above others, and the world places such emphasis on this in light of mental health advocacies (domestic violence is a different case). And yet love in Christianity teaches the opposite – it is dying to ourselves every single day so we can share in the suffering of Christ on the Cross. Only when we become selfless do we have the love that is from the Father, a love that puts others above their own.
A Love Like God Because God Is Love
Is it possible to love like God? My answer is “yes.” If we are truly sons and daughters of God, then the love of the Father should be in us, which now enables us to love like how God loves us. Besides, to love others as He loved us is the second commandment of God. And December is the season that commemorates this great love. I believe it is no coincidence that I am writing about this topic the day before the month of December starts.
Thus, as a flawed human being born in December and yet have been born again through the blood of Christ, I have decided to spend the holidays and my birthday in Manila with my husband as a display of my love for God and to honor my commitment as a wife. Ever since my husband left, we never failed to communicate daily – he pursued me still just like how God continues to pursue us every single day. And yet I am not going to Manila to stay there, but only so we can both be at peace with our decision to go wherever God will call us to serve even if it means being apart for a while.
More so because God is calling my husband to work abroad for how many years on a contract. A great opportunity opened for him to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming an overseas worker, and I can’t help but be overjoyed for him. It’s his answered prayer. Should everything go smoothly in the processing of his application because he’s already halfway through, I told him that his working abroad has God’s anointing and that God is calling him to that country.
Answering God’s Calling
As for me, however, the calling still remains – stay here in my province. I prayed to God if I am where He wanted me to be, and the answer was a clear “yes.” Once my husband works abroad, I am coming back here to my hometown. But I am coming back at peace with my heart whole. ❤️
A lot could happen to me and my husband while we’re apart. The brevity of life teaches us to number our days as the Bible puts it. I have a lot of fears and worries because nobody knows except for God what the future holds for us both. But I also have faith that God is with us, and He is asking me and my husband once again to step out in even greater faith and welcome a new season that we have yet to conquer.
Chick’s love story isn’t over yet, too, whether Chuck is with her or not. I am very much looking forward to the continuation of her life story and also with mine. 🙏
“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” – 1 John 4:18
“Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.” – 1 Corinthians 13:13
“Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” – 1 John 4:8
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” – John 3:16
“Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.” – Romans 12:18
On to yet a new journey. ❤
P. S. Speaking of eggs, I just want to share these salted duck eggs from our regular supplier who lives near one of our rice fields. We got this for 12php apiece, cheaper than the ones sold at the market which costs 15php per piece. Maybe it’s because Dad allows their ducks to graze in our rice fields every after the palay harvest. 😉
It is the family’s 10-year-old son who markets these salted duck eggs to Dad when he sees Dad visiting the rice fields. What I love about these eggs is that they’re not too salty, and yet are perfectly preserved. If ever you know of any local farmers in your area, I’d like to encourage you to buy directly from them to help sell off their products fast. You can also be assured that the products you buy from them are fresh and of good quality but sold for an affordable price. ❤
The boy was selling 40 salted duck eggs. Dad bought 20 pieces, and another farmer bought the last 20 pieces. They’re all sold in just a few minutes after he got out of their house. 😀We eat this with tomatoes and onions doused with a little bit of calamansi juice, and you now have a perfect side dish to pair with the other viands for your breakfast. Yummers! 😋
Yes, this Mama Hen is a chicken and refused to go back to her previous owner. She’s probably scared of being court-martialed for going on mutiny and being sentenced to death by grilling.
Rogue Chicken
I’ve been shooing and chasing her around the yard a hundred times (that would be precisely 100 steps), but to no avail. She keeps on coming back and even chooses to lay her eggs under our garden plants.
There’s something about the numbers “7” & “8” lately.
So, I asked her to get to the bottom of it all:
Me: Are you scaredy cat?
Mama Hen: Well, obviously not. I’m just a chicken.
😂😂😂
To be honest, we’ve already asked the neighbors if the chicken’s theirs, and they said “no.” So we just decided to keep her and her 7 eggs if ever they hatch.
The chickenthat came from nowhere.
I already ordered a chicken net online for the old chicken coop (used previously as a turtle’s cage) that we have here, so her future chicks won’t be scaredy cat of being eaten by real cats.
It looks like this Mama Hen was sent as an unexpected blessing because poultry farming is also one of the projects that we plan to pursue and integrate into our farm. I already created a business plan for it, I’m just waiting for God’s perfect time when to start if it is indeed part of His plans.
Mama Hen chose this perfect spot to lay her eggs.It’s just challenging to “redesign” her cage. But glad to see she’s all dry even during rainy days.
So, Mama Hen should really chicken out because she will be my very first case study for backyard poultry farming. Though I think the probability of her becoming a dearly beloved pet is 99.9%. 😉
The Journeyman's Moments 