Our house sits on a large lot near the edge of our small town. Mom says the house is too close to the street with a small front yard, but a very big back yard. Unless Mom puts me on a walking leash, I really go beyond our play area between the back door and the screened patio. Missy, the dog, gets to make the long loop in the far back yard. She likes to brag about the things she discovers there. Sophia and I try to just ignore her when she goes on about it. She has told us about the baby chickens that come under the fence between our back yard and the neighbor’s yard. The neighbor has a lot of chickens of all sizes. They make a lot of noise. The little ones seem to think there are more interesting bugs to find in our yard rather than their own. Missy loves to chase those chicks, but they are faster than she is.

Today I managed to slip outside while Mom was making trips to and from the car to bring in the groceries. She didn’t notice me, which means I got to lay outside in the shade on the sidewalk to the screened patio all by myself. It was a very peaceful place to hang out. Imagine my surprise when a full grown chicken hopped over the fence and started to check out the bugs in our play area! I’ve watch birds from the windows, but I’d never seen a chicken before. I decided it would be more fun to study it, rather than chase it like Missy. We happily shared the play area until Mom came outside looking for me. The chicken took off in a flash and flew back over the fence. Fun time.