A Pea-fect Morning

Many careers ago, I worked as a short-order breakfast cook, despite having zero ability in the kitchen, then or now.

The property was an old nunnery in a picturesque town in rural New South Wales, with a significant number of animals, which it was partially my job to look after.

A lovely family with a young daughter was staying the night on their way through, and at breakfast, I observed that the little girl was staring enraptured at the peacocks. She couldn’t take her eyes off them.

Being that part of my job was to feed them, I offered to the parents that I could lead the flock around in front of the windows where they could see everything, and offered to let their daughter help me feed them. The look on the little girl’s face was wavering between disbelief and hope, so the parents readily agreed. I led the flock of about twenty peacocks around, and she came out, and she spent about half an hour feeding them sausages and eggs (they will eat almost anything!)

I no longer work in hospitality, but the joy on that little girl’s face kept me on a high for the rest of that week.