Pat Clements

I was out working in the yard after work today. We just got the fence done, and the dogs were working with me, stepping all in my seed beds, and finally my bamboo bean trellis fell over in the strong wind. Oh well.

Run back inside by the darkness, dogs were really hungry. I grabbed the food bowls, and went down the basement stairs to get their food. I suddenly realized a bird had flown through the open garage door and was trying to escape from me towards the stairwell light! I immediately went down the stairs and shut the light off, and turned on the driveway light. No bird. So I creeped back up the stairs, grabbed a mop, and waved it in the air to try to scare the bird towards the light! No bird.

Finally, my eyes adjusted. The old swinging screen door to the basement usually goes unnoticed 50 years, was finally serving a purpose – the frightened bird’s perch. he darkness had calmed it considerably. I eased my finger up in the dark, nudging at the bird’s feet, where it finally roosted on my finger. I slowly walked down the basement stairs in the dark, bird sitting on my finger, easing towards the light of the driveway floods. Finally, the bird leaped from my finger, and flew off into the strong wind.

I wonder if the bird suddenly had an epiphony – ‘This human animal isn’t gonna hurt me’, or ‘It can’t get any worse than this! Might as well jump on!’ Either way, the bird’s apparent trust of me just made my day – maybe a small hope that if a wild bird can trust, maybe there’s hope for us all! It was a great feeling to perform this small deed at the end of a hard day. I have a smile on my face thinking about the way I feel about it as I pass the story along to you!
May you find something special to end your day with every day!