Bird And Sheep

I was walking from a nearby friend's building to my own late one Sunday night, listening to music but being observant of my surroundings. I had just gotten past this overgrown patch of vegetation in front of a vacant lot and was passing by the building which neighbors my own when I saw something lying on the ground in front of me. It was a little bird, and it was entirely motionless but seemingly alert on the driveway into the building's garage.

I was struck first by intrigue and then by concern. I expected that it would flee once I even came near. It didn't. I knelt and reached out to it with my hand, obtaining no reaction. I actually touched it, and it didn't budge. I had been afraid it would hurt me when I tried that, but it did nothing. It seemed that the bird must be hurt. I could think of no alternative explanation for its wakeful state and inactivity. I stood up and looked around, as if there would be someone there to take over or resolve the source of my worry. Nothing doing- I would have to shoulder this thing alone all the way.

I tried to provoke a response with my shoe, this time not making contact. I began to consider doing something with the bird. I discarded the idea of trying to nurse it back to health. That's something that seems to work better in movies than in real life, where ailing animals of that size tend to rapidly expire no matter what an earnest but untrained Good Samaritan does. My thoughts turned to moving it off the driveway and onto the grass, where at least any possible recuperation would not be curtailed by the wheels of a car.

I had one last trick up my sleeve before I resigned myself to that- I mean of course bending down and touching it with my finger again. I didn't really think this would do anything, but it at least forestalled harder decisions for the moment. This time I touched it a little harder. With an inexplicably sudden and powerful force, it leapt up into the air and soared up towards the building's balconies. It had been just fine the whole time, and presumably was playing me for a sucker. I would have been furious enough to try and bring it down with a rock if I hadn't been so relieved that it was in fact all right. I guess all's well that ends well.