Naming Helen:

The Harrowing Tale Behind Our Beloved Chicken's Name

This weeks chicken story is about my white leghorn and her harrowing story of how she earned her name, Helen. It was July 17th, 2021, and so far, none of our new chickens had laid any eggs. Because of this, my husband had blocked off the nesting boxes, preventing them from using it as a resting spot.

On that particular day, my family and I were out together, assuming the hens wouldn't lay. Upon our return, we realized Helen was missing. Searching the coop, I discovered her wedged between the coop door and the nesting box, immobilized and distressed. Without hesitation, I carefully freed her, noticing she had laid her first egg and appeared worse for wear—her wattle askew to the left, sporting a few cuts, and looking utterly fatigued.

Bearing witness to her ordeal, we remarked that she had truly been to hell and back, thus the name Helen. Despite the harrowing experience, something shifted in the flock dynamics that day. Helen seemed to command respect, frequently perched at the top of the pecking order, earning the role as mother hen.

Could it be possible she earned her role by surviving this traumatic event?

Sure seemed like it to us, because we found ourselves admiring her in a whole new light. The day she laid her first egg was a momentous occasion, a celebration not just for Helen but for all of us. It marked her triumph and signified our first official laying hen!

In a light hearted way, Helen's story shows that the things that challenge us the most can turn out to be exactly what we needed to become who we were meant to be