The story: shortly after a young American boy arrives in Indonesia with his mother to begin life with her new husband, a man arrives at the door carrying a red hen and a long sharp knife. The mother and step-father exchange words over whether the boy should witness what is about to happen. The step-father has the final word, saying the boy is old enough to know where his dinner comes from. Next, the child witnesses the killing of the chicken with one cut of the knife across its throat and the death throes of the animal.

The family share a meal of chicken stew in subdued silence.

Later, the boy lies back, rests, and reflects on the day. He can't believe his good fortune.

"So, what's good about his fortune?

"Good about watching a chicken die? That's gross. That ain't no good fortune. It's sick."

"It is gross. But the boy is glad to have had the experience. Why?"

"They do that in Puerto Rico with the ducks except they tie the feet together and hang them up--"

"No. It's like on MTV--"

"What's on MTV?"

The story: "Young ladies who have lived privileged lives are sent into the world by their wealthy families to experience life with people who don't have it so good. So they can see how it is."

"So they're like the boy?"

"Yeah, so they know it ain't easy for everybody like it is for them."

That's the story: somebody has to kill the chicken.

This was a brief bright moment among some eighth graders who just couldn't get over the crimson ribbon of blood shooting out of the bird's neck, its head lolling on its side, the last gasp. I don't know anything about this MTV program. I guess it doesn't matter; she could connect the rich girls' slumming it with an anecdote from Dreams from my Father and understand that a lot of sacrifice and labor go into the making of a life. That's a cool thing.

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