The Eventful Stroll

 

The world was a bountiful bouquet of flowers bursting with beauty and pent-up excitement, having been dormant for the long winter; now they were joyous and inquisitive shooting, squeezing and wriggling out of every corner. The trees were exploding in color like firecrackers on July 4^th night.

The morning had passed uneventfully as I walked through the neighborhood, cognizant of all the sounds and smells of spring around me. From the busy ants forming long supply lines on their mission of leaf building, to the buzzing bees busily attending their flowers and providing their cross pollination, to the skinny squirrels who had just barely made it through winter in spite of their impressive memories for hiding nuts. The world was coming alive again in the annual transition of seasons when I came upon a curious little bird walking vertically up the trunk of a tree! I stopped dead in my tracks never having seen such a spectacle before.

“Don’t you know that it is rude to stare human?” said the bird.

“Yes, indeed I am aware that it is quite rude and I apologize for my behavior but it is just that I have never seen a bird use such an unusual form of locomotion,” I said in dismay.

 “Do I try to tell you how to drive your car, which most of you humans do in a reprehensible and dastardly fashion?” tweeted the annoyed avian.

“Point well taken, but it just seems to me that it would be easier to fly up to your nest rather than walk vertically. That is all I meant to say,” I mumbled trying not to inflame my new acquaintance any further.

“Well, if in fact it was easier to do it that way, don’t you think that I would do it that way?” the irate little fellow expressed becoming more annoyed and flummoxed.

“Yes, I suppose that you are following certain instinctual protocols. One cannot fight Mother Nature. Please accept my apologies, Mr. Bird “.

“Instinctual protocols indeed! Do you think that you are the only species that can think for itself, human? I decide myself how to function best in daily life.”

“I fear that I have ruffled your feathers, no pun intended. I will be going now,” I exclaimed trying to avoid making the situation any worse.

“Just a minute human. Would you like to attend a tea party?” said Certhia the Brown Creeper.

“I would be honored if you don’t mind, however I am surprised at your invitation as I have annoyed you so. I do have some free time,” I exclaimed.

“Just give me a minute as I must ask permission of my guests whether I may bring a human into our little klatch as many of my guests are already in attendance and this would understandably prove a most unusual and surprising turn of events. Many of my associates believe that it is a blessing that your species has left the trees far behind in your primordial memory and with it your skill in transversing them has invariably suffered.”

At this juncture the bird began to sing in such a  beautiful voice that I was enchanted by its sound. Soon an array of different bird voices began to tweet and squawk simultaneously with a certain degree of excitement in their racket. I tried not to be insulted by their anti-human rhetoric.

Certhia turned to me now and said, “You are welcome to attend, I have given my word that you will be respectful of my guests and you must swear a solemn oath that you will never reveal to anyone the location of my nest. Do you promise?”

“I do indeed,” was my response. “But all I have to contribute is a corn muffin wrapped up in my pocket”.

“Your corn muffin will be most welcome and appreciated. We do not consume much food and tend to eat like birds,” said Certhia in a tongue in cheek manner giving me a side eye. “Very well then, we have a bit of a trek still before us,” exclaimed Certhia.

It soon became clear that the task before me would be difficult as my ascent up into the canopy was almost a straight vertical climb through a bramble of twisted vines and mosses. The sounds of the street traffic far below faded away as I ascended to previously unrealized heights and occasionally felt the gentle sway of the tree as a warm breeze blew through its branches. Far above I could see the brightly lit green leaves at the top of the canopy and looking west, Brooklyn was in my view. A machete and a tall ladder would have made quick work of this twisted gnarled mess, but that was of course unacceptable human behavior as this was all camouflage and the location was picked intentionally for its remote well-hidden setting. It all seemed a little extreme to my taste, but Certhia knew her situation much better than myself.

Finally, I could see a large old tree house with a twisted mass of twigs weaved in and out of each other not far above me. The structure was quite massive and out of all scale for my tiny friend as if a single individual were inhabiting Norte Dame Cathedral. My small friend Certhia had gone before me and now stood at the portal entrance to the nest inside the tree house and introduced me to her friends.

“Hello everyone this is an acquaintance of mine. He is a civilized human and has agreed to come to tea.”

Without saying anything I realized that the nest had been built inside an ancient tree house that although weathered and worn had been well constructed with dove-tailed joints, and as the tree grew it had remained intact, rising up to the heavens as the tree vaulted up and up into the sky. I looked around in the cavernous nest which was impressive indeed. It must have required a great deal of work from the little Brown Creeper.

“I must ask, did you build all this yourself Certhia? “

“No certainly not. All my friends that you see here and numerous others came to help me build it. It is quite impressive don’t you think?”

“Yes indeed,” I said avoiding any mention of the exterior housing of the tree house. The floor was covered in thick grass and the walls were made of vines weaving in and out of one another. The walls were covered with various attractive leaves horticulturally coaxed and pulled inside forming a living wallpaper. The Rotunda was painted with peeling sky blue paint and blended in with the sky visible through the aperture. It was presumably a relic of its past human inhabitants who had left their apple-cheeked youth far behind and if they were still alive, were now wizened, old grey beards, with no intention of climbing into treetops ever again. With some difficulty I was able to enter the space although my entrance was admittedly less than grand.

Already In attendance were the Cardinal in his impressive bright red plumage with an air of the ecclesiastical, solemn and meditative. To his right sat the Blue Jay. Loud and boisterous in his bright blue plumage, he expressed his opinions without being asked for them and was uninhibited about rustling any feathers. The Cardinal informed him those unsolicited opinions had little value but the Blue Jay ignored this comment having already moved onto his next dogmatic point. The brooding Black Hawk with his strict military discipline seemed ready to strike at the Blue Jay who had obviously annoyed him, his sharp curled talons were at the ready to launch like a nuclear strike. The beautiful White Swan Christie looking like she had just completed a photo shoot for the cover of Audubon Monthly sat unimpressed with the proceedings, preening her coat. Towering in the corner somewhat ominously crouched was the massive California Condor Jose who was visiting town. I sensed that he was nervous about my presence given his endangered status. Meanwhile the iridescent green and pink high strung Hummingbird appropriately named Edgy, fluttered about occasionally landing for a momentary rest, taking a sip of her tea and then was off again in her continual hovering stance, gauche and unable to relax. Dorothy Duck who was always watching her weight due to a high fat content complemented Edgy for her self discipline with no need to attend a gym or watch her diet. Certhia who had settled in now after her climb up the tree made sure everyone was comfortable and sated each with a cup of tea and something to eat. My contribution of the corn muffin took center stage centered on the bird feeder around which everyone sat in a large circle. On the deck was a bird bath but only Dorothy went for a swim presumably wishing to burn some calories.

Many subjects were discussed of which I had little interest in or involvement with, such as the blight of pigeons and seagulls both of which everyone in attendance seemed to hold in contempt. A main topic of discussion was new Cats in The Neighborhood which all in attendance were told to be wary of, giving their general location and a detailed physical description as well as a rap sheet of their crimes against the avian community. Certhia, as the master of ceremonies occasionally directed the conversation towards me so that I would not feel left out of the proceedings. The afternoon went by quickly and was much more pleasant than I would have predicted. As the party was breaking up, I said my goodbyes to all and received a warm goodbye from all in attendance as well as an open invitation from Certhia to come back in the future to visit. Climbing down the tree was more treacherous than climbing up, but I returned to “Terra Firma” before sunset and went home happy after a day well spent in good company.

 

Jim

Apr 2022