My son Alex and I were sitting on our back deck enjoying the late morning sun when we heard the frantic call of a bird. Looking around we saw a bird chasing another bird through the underbrush of our woods. While the one bird seemed to be trying to escape, the other frantically stayed hot on its trail. Its wings were flapping, mouth open, and the constant screaming for attention had us both wondering…
“What the heck are they fighting about?” I asked as we watched them now up in a tree hopping from one branch to another as the one tried to get away.
Alex sat up in his chair and laid his hand across his eyebrows to block the glare of the sun while he tried to watch their high speed chase. “Well, the one doing the chasing seems to be pretty upset.”
“But the one he’s chasing isn’t making a sound.” I shook my head in confusion. “It’s just trying to stay one step ahead of the crazy one.”
They were now on the same branch while one was sitting quietly the other was making a fuss, flapping it’s wings, it’s head tipped back, and it’s mouth wide open. That’s when the first bird leaned over and placed something in the other bird’s mouth.
“Oh, my gosh!” I cried. “That must be a fledgling!”
Alex looked over at me. “Really?”
“Now I recognize that frantic chirp!” I pointed to the birdhouse. “We’ve been listening to those same chirps for the last few weeks.” I looked back at the patient parent as it fed the baby again. “They’re out of the nest and flying now but Mom and Dad are still trying to teach them how to find food on their own.”
We watched as the adult landed on our bird feeder and took a few seeds before flying back to the tree limb the baby was on.
“Look at that! She’s trying to show her baby where the food is!” I couldn’t help but smile at the lesson she was trying to teach.
A few seconds later the baby bird tried to land on our feeder. But, instead of the smooth landing I’m sure Mom had been hoping for, her baby slammed into the feeder causing it to spin like a merry-go-round. Alex and I tried to contain our laughs as the baby held on for dear life crying out it’s complaints before breaking free from the spinning feeder to return to the tree branch without any seeds.
“That was a nice try.” I said as we listened to the baby continue with its complaints until once again the parent relented and leaned over to fed them again.
“Keep trying!” I called out to the baby. “Practice makes perfect!”
Alex nodded his head. “True.”
We sat back watching for several more minutes until Alex looked over at me. “Are you getting hungry?” He asked.
I shrugged my shoulders. “A little. Are you ready for some lunch?”
“I could eat.” Alex nodded. “What’s for lunch?”
I looked over at him and raised my eyebrows. “I don’t know. What are you having for lunch?”
Alex looked surprised. “Oh!” Then he started to laugh. “I think I saw some chicken salad in the refrigerator. Do you want me to make you a sandwich?”
“That would be lovely!” I said with a smile.
As Alex got up to go into the house I looked over at the Mommy bird who was still trying to teach her baby to feed itself. “Don’t worry my friend. You’re little one will get there.” I called out to her. “Just be patient!”
Alex started to laugh. “I heard that!” He called over his shoulder.
Slice of Life 