Chicken Run

Once upon a time...no, wait, that was just yesterday!  This is a story about a little red hen.  The chickens are always plotting ways to escape their pen.  They remember how nice it was to free range and have forgotten the dangers.  I try to be very careful when entering their gate to block the way either with a bucket or my foot as they cluster around the entrance.  Yesterday was an extra-milk day and so the chickens were getting their share.  They were very excited and ran to their bowl and, thinking they were all occupied, I wasn't quite as vigilant as I should have been as I opened the gate to step out.  Sure enough, one hen saw her opportunity and slipped out behind my leg to freedom.  Drat!  This situation was a real dilemma as I couldn't leave the gate open to chase her in; there would be a mass exodus by the others.  Of course, the first place she headed was under the coop, big enough for a chicken but way too small for me.  Bessie had stayed in the house and I was grateful because, eager to help, she would have done nothing but create chaos.  Pearl became my point man.  "Go in there and make her come out, Pearl!"  And Pearl did.  The red hen came out from under the coop and we began making the rounds of the pen.  For once, I was glad of the surrounding weeds because they slowed her down.  Mad King George was either encouraging her or scolding her from inside the pen, running along the fence line.  He distracted her enough that I was able to grab her legs and effect a rescue.  I returned Red to the flock.  All that was left for me to do was pick a hundred or so little dart weed seeds out of my socks before going back to the house.  I do like a happy ending to these little tales.