There seems a mischief afoot. A large part of my day now involves differentiating between what is real with what is counterfeit. For example. When I urged my husband we should consider a sustainable food supply, he said: “Bah!” “Chickens!”

He seemed to view hens as screeching little creatures which are largely good for nothing and may take our time apart from more important things. In the wake of the disintegrating global supply chain, I suggested: “Eating is important.”

Anyhow, “hens” we have discovered are terrific little friends who gladly give their bounty on behalf of farmers that love them. Affection, adventure, antics…(Eggs, too). What fun we had last summer with Copper and the gang! Hens only screech and cause a fuss when foolish farmers let foxes in or treat them unkind otherwise.

It’s seems risky to conclude the value of a thing depends on your attitude toward it. I think it is more accurate to say: the value of a thing is in the eye of the beholder. And the beholder eats the fruit of his own attitude. The perceived value of a thing is subject to the beholder. The actual value of a thing may therefore be infinitely above our short-sighted view.

Hens are infinitely more valuable than “chickens.” Chicken security wire that keeps out animals is far superior to the “chicken security wire” that Chip- the chipmunk- ate through the first day I put it up. Farm fresh foods are superior to “supermarket” foods. You can spend $400 on processed foods and still be starving.

Copper the hen only ever ate fresh local food – far from the “processing plants.” You can imagine a “food processing center” might be the hell on earth for hens, so I try to avoid delving into that subject too much.

But, why are companies spending so much money producing food with no actual nutritional value?🤔 And why are people so fat? I’m starting agree with Copper- that is a little bit of hell on earth. So, I won’t delve into that too much.

I guess Americans largely have not been educated to distinguish between a thing and the appearance of a thing. The bad news is we’ve been eating a lot of faux food. The good news is that for every fake thing we experience or are fooled by, there exists a genuine version.

There are pretenses to kindness, but there is also true kindness. There is religious pretention, like in the story of Job. But also genuine redemption and hope in that same story. There is the Twinkie- that lab creation that is sugary sweet and makes you happy to look at its bright yellow color. But don’t by fooled by the illusion. And there is Copper, too. That bright, cheery, happy friend that is genuine thing.