The Sixth Day of Christmas

On the sixth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

I've never really thought about the verses of this song before, but some of them don't make sense. Do geese really lay eggs in the winter? The only experience I have is with the ubiquitous Canadian Geese that have taken up residence (and have become pests) here; they only nest in the spring.

I think it would be interesting to eat a goose egg. They're four times bigger than a chicken egg, and according to my research the much bigger yolk is very firm, almost custard-like, and makes a richer baked product. Unfortunately, I won't be enjoying one this year. Maybe in 2010.

Here's a fable from Aesop about geese:

THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGGS

A man and his wife had the good fortune to possess a goose which laid a golden egg every day. Lucky though they were, they soon began to think they were not getting rich fast enough, and, imagining the bird must be made of gold inside, they decided to kill it in order to secure the whole store of precious metal at once. But when they cut it open they found it was just like any other goose. Thus, they neither got rich all at once, as they had hoped, nor enjoyed any longer the daily addition to their wealth.

Moral: Much wants more and loses all.