by Jeannie Travis
I guess Y’all know the color of the eggshell is determined by what breed of chicken laid the eggs. I too love using brown eggs, not only are they beautiful but I imagine they taste better. A little old Lady I once knew, Eva Grace Atteberry, had all sorts of mixed up banty’s, half banties and regular chickens. She said each one laid the same sort of egg all it’s life and color too, of course. Some eggs were almost round, some long and pointy, and in all different egg colors. She said each day the egg would get a little smaller till the hen had laid out her clutch, plus the hen would lay a little later each day. Raised on a Montana ranch with a tutor for education, this poor old lady learned more about things on a day to day basis than anyone I know by watching carefully the world around her little home. Mind you I have nothing against pink, green or blue eggs as laid by the Aracuana chickens, but then THOSE are scarce as hen’s teeth !
We were visiting my Grandmother one Spring day. I guess I was about 3 or 4 years old and as I wandered around in the back yard I noticed her big bed of purple iris was getting ready to bloom .Since we didn’t have any Iris, I guess I was curious to see what they looked like inside. I was sorta bad about that sort of thing. I pulled all of the pretty purple buds and got up under the porch and peeled the petals off, one by one. The dirt beneath me became covered with lovely deep purple petals, as I sat there carefully unrolling them.. And one of the kids snitched on me. I remember they noticed me sitting there, bent down to see me better, but didn’t say a word, just ran and got Ma. She squatted down by the edge of the porch and looked at me and my lovely surroundings for a minute, then she asked me why I had done that to her pretty flowers. Ducking my head, I gave her the only possible answer….” Just ’cause….”