Whose Rights Came First?(a legal brief using chickens) - April 7, 2024

a hen laid an egg

that broke when it fell from the nest

if that’s a homicide

is it first or second degree

with the mother hen

cooped up

for ten to twenty?

and the farmer that

frightened her off

the nest and made it fall

is that accessory to murder?

can the egg

be scooped up

scrambled or fried

or would I be arrested for

 cruel and unusual punishment

or must I leave it

for the dead egg-person

 whose rights are slowly oozing

across the coop’s

concrete floor?