Well, I thought of this during my first blog (Animals). Now, one of my favorite dinners includes fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy. And no, it doesn't "bother" me when I fry up the chicken breasts.
However, there was a time when I felt differently. One summer when I was a teen, I spent a week at my grandparents' farm. When we were younger--and lived in the area--we'd visit the farm often; I helped my great grandmother gather eggs from the chicken house while my brother helped with the crops & other animals. Once, they even tried to teach me how to milk a cow. Let's just say I'm sure glad we didn't have to rely on me to bring in milk for the day!
Now, the year I'm talking about, I think I was about sixteen. Most of my week there was spent sunbathing in the small area that wasn't shaded, or reading. But I did help out in the kitchen as well as other chores. By this time, my great grandparents had passed on. So it was my grandmother whose job was to pick out the chicken & 'prepare' it for dinner. She hadn't asked me to 'help'; but for some reason, I was nearby. I hadn't really thought about it, I suppose; the chickens weren't "pets". And I didn't like the way they 'bugged' me when I went to gather eggs. But, still, I never wished them harm.
You've heard the expression "wringing someone's neck". Well, that's not just an expression on a farm. After that, of course, you have the "axe". Without going into detail, I'll tell you that I did NOT eat any chicken that day--or for a while after that! I have a hunch that if I had to 'prepare' chicken that way, that I would not be eating it any more! (Thank heavens for Supermarkets!)
