Bia (October 2020 - August 2021)
Losing our beloved chicken Bia has been so hard. Sad, traumatic, shocking, scary. I knew we were all getting very attached to these 6 little chickies, but I had no idea just how much her death would rock us all until this past Monday, when she was apparently killed by a fox right next to our house, in the middle of the day.
We'd been able to let these little ones roam free in our backyard for a couple carefree months, but now they're back to a life inside their (luxury) cage. So, on top of the sadness we're feeling for our loss, we've also got to deal with a nice cage-sized heap of guilt.
Andrea and I made sure we had a little ceremony for Bia and we all go back to visit her grave whenever we want to say hi. We're trying really hard to follow the girls' lead - if they're nervous about leaving the chickens alone, one of us stays back. When Samina was out with a friend yesterday, I promised to check on them every 10 minutes (and did).
Going through this first very painful death as a family has been yet another learning moment for me. I know that the trauma of this experience is already something that has shaped the girls. I know that we have all been able to get through the past 18 months of covid life relatively scot-free thanks to our chicken friends and the lovely and loving distraction they've given us. Bia and her sisters have been a constant source of wonder, laughter and just something positive that we were able to associate to these hard times. The sudden pain of losing one of them seems to have put a crack in the fragile equilibrium she'd helped us create.
When I said goodbye to Bia, I promised her we would take good care of her sisters, and after a couple days of the girls being hesitant to visit with the remaining five, they are back in there, laughing and snuggling them. I am thankful for their resilience, but I also know that something in them - in all of us - has shifted. A consciousness of the fragility of life that not even 2 lockdowns, social distancing and constant mask wearing has really been able to bring home.
We will miss you Bia, and we will never forget you and the joy you brought to our little family. Rest in peace.
Meeting the chickens for the first time
Tiny chicks in the very early days
Sami with Bia
Bia's gorgeous little punim
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