Operation birdie rescue.

This morning started out so perfectly. Mildly warm weather with a gentle breeze. The kids watering their seeds in the back yard, then playing w/ a shoebox full of sand and their riding toys. A toddler making it known he wanted to walk to the park. I was feeling indulgent, so off we started to go. We made it about three houses before it happened.

"Mom! Look! That birdie is only flapping one wing. He's in the street! We have to help him!"

Okay. Deep breath. "We need to find a box."
He brings me an old lego carton.
"It needs to have a lid."
His eyes start welling up. "This is all I could find."
"Hang on a sec." I run into the house, and grab the pull-ups box. Dump the pull-ups into a plastic tote, grab an old towel and come back out.
"You found one!" No more tears, just joy.

That was one lucky bird. Two trucks had already steered around it. I headed into the street while kids 2,5, & 6 stared from the sidewalk. The fledgling hopped towards the box. I put the towel behind it to hem it in, and it hopped the rest of the way. I then put the towel on the box and secured the flaps.

"Everyone in the car!"
"Can't we keep it?"
"No honey. Wild animals have to stay wild. It's not a pet."
"Where are we taking it?"
"I'm going to start at Animal Haven. They'll know where to get it help."
"I'll bet God is really happy we're taking care of his creation." Bob piped up.
"I'm sure he is." I smiled...and kind of sighed.
So off we go with a complaining bird in a box. When we arrive at animal haven....

"Doggie!"
"Can we have a cat?"
"Can we play with them?"
"Why are there so many animals in cages?"

I explain that this like a homeless shelter for animals waiting for new people to take them home. No, we can't get a cat. Dad is allergic to them. No we can't get a dog. Our home doesn't allow pets. Yes, there are nice people who volunteer their time to come play with and care for the animals.
"Can I volunteer?"
"Sure, when you're a little older honey."

When we get inside, we get a reference to O.W.L. Next stop, the Wildlife refuge.

On the door is a sign stating "No skunks, PLEASE."
When we walked in they were discussing the medical care of a chipmunk who had been caught by a cat. I have to admire people who have empathy for chipmunks. Personally, we've considered getting a snake to eat them in our garage.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" the cheerful desk dude asked.
"Uh, fledgling robin. We think he might have an injured wing. My son says he can only flap one side." (Yes, we knew it's a he. His red feathers were just starting to come in under the fluff.)

A mother earth type lady comes to get him. "Hi birdie. Let's go have a look at you."
I fill out some paper-work while Princess P happily plays with wildlife beanies, and Bob peers over the counter to see everything that's going on. We get a flier about O.W.L. and what they do. I temporarily lose track of Si.

Earth lady comes back out. "Come here everyone! It's education time. This birdie gets to go back home!"

Princess P and Bob come very close to her, where she's holding the birdie. Si Guy, well, he's behind the sales counter with the breakable, collectable plates of course. Seeing the live bird out of the box draws him back to where he belongs though.

"This little guy can't quite fly up yet. He can probably fly down and coast horizontally, but that's about it." She stretched out his wing. "See these feathers. They aren't quite long enough yet. His wing is not injured. He just hasn't really mastered using them yet. Just put him back close to where you found him. Mom and Dad will recognize him by call."

"Oh, okay. Thank you. I guess I made a mistake." Bob looked kind of embarrassed.
"No. No. You didn't know. You did the right thing. It's important to take care of nature.'
My crest-fallen child started to smile again.

So we returned home with the peeved, frightened bird and let it loose again in the neighbors yard. Sure our morning was shot, but my mama feathers were fluffed with pride. It's good to see that our children understood the life lessons we'd been trying to teach them about compassion and stewardship.