While hanging out on Facebook, I came across this comment:
In my humble opinion, asking “Why should you keep chickens when you can just buy eggs in the supermarket?” is like asking “Why bother knitting a garment from hand-dyed merino yarn when you can just buy a cheap acrylic sweater on SHEIN?” or “Why buy a mug at an artisan fair when you can get a whole set of mass-produced crockery for the same price?”
It’s all about priorities. And perspective.
Sure, if you’re just calculating how many eggs you get per dollar, Walmart makes the most sense. But as any backyard chicken keeper will tell you, raising your own flock is so much more.
It’s the satisfaction of pulling a warm, fresh egg from the nesting box, then cracking it into a pan and seeing the firm, perfectly formed golden yolk.
It’s seeing your kids turn up their noses at an omelet from store-bought eggs because they can tell the difference.
It’s walking past empty egg shelves in the supermarket when supply chains get disrupted for some reason, and not being bothered because you have far superior eggs at home.
It’s the diversity of the eggs you gather, each one in a different shape, color, and size; and our favorite guessing game, “Who laid this?”
It’s the quiet joy of an afternoon cup of tea while you hang out with your clucking friends. Their antics never fail to entertain!
It’s never having to throw out leftovers again, because chickens eat practically everything.
It’s letting your birds loose and seeing cockroaches, crickets, centipedes, and other creepy-crawlies get demolished.
It’s the miracle of watching a tiny chick hatch in an incubator or peek from under its mama’s wing. (The little guys in the photo above are actually guinea keets, but they’re too cute to leave out!)
It’s becoming an informal learning hub for the neighbors’ kids, who get to watch a food chain they had previously thought very little about.
It’s a different kind of life. And when you love it, you stop counting eggs per dollar, and just live it and enjoy.
Domestic Felicity 