Gathering the courage to walk away.

When I was teenager, I read a short story by Ursula K. Le Guin titled, "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas." It's the story of a Utopian society. It's beautiful and prosperous and the people are happy and healthy. But there's a dark secret. The beauty and grace and prosperity of the entire city depends solely on the suffering of a single child. Everybody knows it is there. The child MUST live in misery. The terms of the deal are explicit, not even a kind word may be said to the child, but as long as the child is miserable, the city will continue to be beautiful and prosperous.


I remember being upset by the story, but I also realized that everything can't be perfect, that there would always be suffering and misery in our society, so I accepted that. I didn't walk away.


But, then it happened. (Stealing a small excerpt):


"At times one of the adolescent girls or boys who go see the child does not go home to weep or rage, does not, in fact, go home at all. Sometimes also a man or a woman much older falls silent for a day or two, then leaves home. These people go out into the street, and walk down the street alone. They keep walking, and walk straight out of the city of Omelas, through the beautiful gates. They keep walking across the farmlands of Omelas. Each one goes alone, youth or girl, man or woman."


Some time last year, I fell silent. I started thinking about a lot of things we accept as, "Just the way things are." and I decided I didn't like them. I don't like the way commercially raised food animals are treated. I don't like the way we Americans are willing to give up basic rights because they want their neighborhoods to photograph well. I don't like a lot of things. To quote my hippie friends, "I'm mad as Hell and I won't take any more."

It started as a simple desire to have chickens in my backyard and an urge to become more self-reliant. I was appalled by images from commercial egg farms and decided that one small step I could take is to get my eggs from my own flock of hens. Everybody else was doing it, there are articles in the Dallas Morning news about this lady and her little flock of city-chickens. Heck even Martha Stewart was doing it!


However, Benbrook city ordinances and HOA regulations specifically prohibited the keeping of chickens and ducks. Me being me, I figured that stupid laws are meant to be broken so I got them anyway. My direct neighbors were not offended, they thought the chickens were entertaining and enjoyed sharing the fresh eggs.


But, as was bound to happen, someone else in the neighborhood found out about my illegal chicken keeping operation and turned me in to Animal Control. Now I had the city on my case. Over CHICKENS! Really. Chickens that were in my own backyard behind a 6 foot tall wooden privacy fence.


I was already in the ACO's sights because I fostered rescue animals for a 501(c)3 rescue. Benbrook ordinances allow 3 dogs and 2 cats. I had 5 dogs and 2 cats. (Though at one point I had had a houseful of cats but that's another story entirely. Those cats had been re-homed and I was happily at 2 at the time.) But I was getting calls from the city, and notices and it was getting unbearable.

At this point, something inside me snapped. I thought to myself, why would anyone care if I have 5 dogs as long as they are well taken care of? Why should anyone care if I have hens in my backyard, they don't bother anyone. Their cackling is one third the decibels of a poodle yapping. What business is it of theirs? Apparently 'We the People' have set up our cities this way. We have given up our personal freedoms so that our neighbors will not be offended by anything we may want to do.


I figured I had two options. I could fight city hall or I could walk away. The 'For Sale' sign went up the following week.


I have accepted that I can't change the hearts and minds of the ones who want to live in Omelas. But MY heart has changed and now I live on 5 acres in the country that have NO restrictions. BEST MOVE EVER!


Over the next several posts I will cover the steps that got me as far as here, where I hope this little walk will take me, and what I am doing to start the process for Step Two: Walking Away From Corporate America.