In 2019, AMI thanked our laying flock of Barred Rock hens for their many eggs before harvesting them as stew hens. The next day though, an escapee was found, roaming the farm with the majestic rooster, Dwayne. She earned a name - Belinda - and roams the farm to this day. In honor of the week's pardoned poultry, here's a dedication.
By Melanie Canales, Farm Fellow
A most ardent and empassioned ode
To our poultress supreme, our
Beakon of fowl femme energy,
Our Belinda, the hen, the myth, the legend.
Truly, can a day be said to begin before the sun
wreaths atop your magnificent plumage, a black
and white speckle putting dalmatians to shame,
with a compost-smattered tuft so dank
Dwayne himself could only dream of in vain.
O thou light-winged Sprite, thou spirit-kin of Dorcas and
Her web-footed gaggle, your cooping I vow to decry.
The clover would weep, the alliums and nightshades
Umoor themselves from their terrestrial grip
were your Cone Day nigh.
And though that restless rapscallion of Death
Galumphs steadfast as the years begin and end,
May there always be duck feed to poach and
Peppers to peck, may there always be compost to rend.
When garden and galaxy have gone to rest
The stars will remember
Belinda, the hen, the myth, the legend.
