What I expected to see was a peaceful barnyard scene: the donkey and goat grazing, while one red hen, Ms. Pickety, pecked around in the dirt alongside her giant protectors.
What I saw as I glanced out my kitchen window appeared to be several fowls piled atop each other with dust rising from their activity.
No donkey or goat in sight.
My maternal instincts immediately took over. Shouting, I rushed out the door and across the porch. At the edge of the porch, I stopped in disbelief. Hearing my loud cry, one of the fowl had disentangled itself from the melee and, a little awkwardly, flew away. A hawk!
The two victors remaining on the ground were Ms. Pickety … and a black crow. I was speechless!
Over time, Ms. Pickety and the crows had learned to tolerate, almost enjoy, each other’s presence. Every morning, after I scattered the grain and left the pen, the crows would join her in cleaning up the grain that I had scattered. Watching the little family of crows that visit each day brings me a certain joy. But I had no idea of the importance of their presence in my barnyard.
I have never liked hawks. That is, since I have had chickens and watched the hawks hungrily fly over my pen. One by one, my chickens have disappeared. This one red hen has outlasted them all. I was to learn later that it was because the crows could intimidate the hawks. Apparently, she has now garnered some friends who will come to her defense.
Oh, this fallen world! Victims and predators.
I am sure there are varying ideas of who the predator is and who the victim is in most scenarios. It all depends on the beholder’s worldview.
My worldview in the kingdom of animals is colored by the ones I own, know, and love. I will care for them and protect them against any predator. Common sense is sometimes overridden by empathy/compassion.
That hawk may have gone for days without food. She may have a nest of baby hawks she has to feed. However, caring for my own creatures is my focus. In my world, the chicken is the victim, and the hawk is the predator.
Ah, but God sees the bigger picture.
Oh, for the day when there are no more victims or predators. The day when the lion will lie down with the lamb, and the hawk will eat with the chicken!