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"Mum, come and see this," Zachary
whispered. He took his mum’s hand and led her to the side of the house.
"Look at all the bluebirds."
Dozens of bluebirds perched on the
white picket fence behind their house. "They’re beautiful," Mum said.
"Where in the world did they come from?"
"I don’t know, but watch this,"
Zachary said. "He reached into his pocket and threw a handful of birdseed
into the air. The bluebirds flew from the fence, swarming around the seed.
Some caught it in mid-air. Other’s waited until the seed landed on the
grass.
"That’s amazing. Can I try?" Mum
asked. Zachary handed her some seed. She threw it high into the air.
Bluebirds zoomed here and there, trying to get the seeds before they fell.
"They’re noisy," she laughed, covering her ears. They chirped loudly as
they fought over the seed. "This is fun, Zachary."
He smiled and nodded his head. He
tossed a few more handfuls on the grass and then went back to the front of
his house. "That’s a lot of birds. I hope Mrs. Mills’ cats don’t see them,
or hear them," Zachary said.
Mum thought about all the bluebirds
in her back garden. "Maybe we shouldn’t feed them anymore. Let’s go and
shoo them all away."
They went into the back and just
about that time, several of Mrs. Mills’ cats came outside. They spotted
the birds. "Look, Mum. Cats!"
Mum watched in horror as the cats
crept up on the bluebirds. They were about to pounce when Zachary started
to shout. He ran towards the birds, waving his arms and shouting, "Go away
birds!" The birds flew high into the air and landed in the branches of the
nearby trees. "At least the cats can’t get them now, not unless they climb
the trees. The birds will see them before they get too high."
"Feeding the birds is fun, and it
was amazing to see all those bluebirds, but I think it’s best we don’t
encourage too many to come at once. There are too many cats around this
neighborhood," Mum said.
The next day Zachary built several
bluebird houses and hammered them to the trees, up high, out of the cats
reach. He filled them with seed every morning. He was able to watch the
bluebirds. The cats weren’t too happy with him, but the birds were safe. |
