It has been a crazy week. After 8 days away, this past week has been spent playing catch up. Catch up with the family. Catch up with the work.

I have been on auto-respond and in reactive mode… and that is never the best place for me to operate.

And then when this little article over on the other site went viral, it was dealing with site issues, and a bit of digital chaos.

So yesterday, with the sun shining, I spent some time hunkered down in the dirt with our crew. Sitting in the sunshine,surrounded by chickens, and enjoyed the view.

The simplicity of happy and hardworking hens kind of clears the mind.

Their eagerness and appreciation at being outside, rolling in the dust and snacking on greens and grubs.

Their acceptance of the little people, chasing them down, and giving them love and affection.

And it simplified everything else in my life. It allowed me to “change my lens” and refocus on what I needed to. It filled my lungs with clean air, and I was able to appreciate what I have, where I am and accept where I want to go.

And I took my camera, and I started taking pictures of these happy hens. Sitting back, as they scavenged in the garden, I watched them react to each other, keeping an eye on the sky (for hawks) and finally relaxing into the sunshine.

The peace of sitting and being surrounded by productivity is amazing. The ability to be in and among, without disturbing is a gift.

And so, in fear of coming across as a crazy chicken lady, I will only share a few of my pics. But I hope you too can see the beauty in small things, and possibly my pretty hens will give something back to you this morning as well.

Maybe there is a chance that this will inspire you to take a look around you, to slow down for a second and re-set your chaos switch. Spend a few minutes with my backyard chickens and lets see if it helps change your world.