Steven and the Birds

Steven has this amazing way with birds.

If you peruse the new BMS yearbook you will see a picture of Steven at the zoo with about five parroty-looking birds perched on his head, shoulders, and arms. He just somehow charmed them, the others said.

Yesterday Russell finished siding the house (WOO-HOO!!) and in the process flushed out a nest of half-grown starlings from the porch rafters or somewhere. Apparently he suggested to Steven that he make pets out of them which would have been perfectly ok except that Steven took this as license to take them into the house.

I entered the story at this point when I heard this commotion* in the living room and rushed in to find Steven chasing after two birds that were fluttering in opposite directions. He looked guilty and frazzled, and I’m afraid I blew a gasket when I found out what he was up to.

Steven and the birds were promptly dispatched outside. He managed to keep them on the porch, and dug a bucket of dirt in the garden and dug through for worms to feed them. I am not one to appreciate birds in the living room or worms on the porch so this was all kind of a trial to me.

Anyway, back to this kid’s amazing way with birds, I looked out at one point and he was sitting on the porch swing, bent forward, with one bird on his head and one on his back. All three just sat there quietly for a long time.

Later, Steven told me that the birds were screaming so he told them to calm down, and they did.

If I can survive Matt’s science experiments and Emily’s painting messes and Jenny’s nonstop chatter, I suppose I can survive this as well. And if Steven is a famous veterinarian someday, he’d better thank me.


* “commotion” at our house is probably “complete pandemonium” at yours; “commotion” at your house is probably “mere background noise” at ours

Quote of the Day:
“Do you need a campaign before you can have a press conference?”
--Jenny, who must be a typical non-voting but consumed-with-politics Mennonite