Written by Nina Earle
It watches as the small giant comes closer. It bobbles on its two legs, waiting for the moment that the giant crosses the line. A line only seen by it, and so the giant crosses the invisible line, and it bursts into the air. The air is pushed strongly under their arms and leads them up there. As it hits the air, a cry comes from the mini giant. “Birdie”
Birds are odd animals that continuously play a dangerous game with their lives. The Birds know that humans are both safe and dangerous. It is an interesting balance. There are birds like city pigeons or seagulls that stare down every person that they see. These birds have no fear and they only have one goal and that is food. A pigeon will not only come close if a person offers food but will also approach if they are not. We have all seen the fictional story on the tv where a bird steals a sandwich or hotdog. I don’t know if that is reality, but I do know that certain birds will get close. They will come up and jump either near you or around you waiting for the lucky moment when you drop some food.
With their pretty feathers and small build birds are hunted for more than food purposes. In the wild, birds must have some sort of instinct to survive as long as they do. I don’t know that much about birds. But imagine that the same instinct that drives them to migrate to the same locations every year also told them when a predator was nearby. What interests me is if the history of humans feeding birds, intentionally or not, ruined the birds’ instincts when it comes to people.
When I was little there was always a game between me and the birds in my yard. It was to see how close I could get without them moving. They always won this game. Within moments, they would sense my presence and look straight at me. I wonder what was going on in their heads as the human child approached them?
