One sunny summer morning, I was looking out the kitchen window, as I often do. I saw something on the rocks of our waterfall that looked, well, fluorescent yellow. So I grabbed my binoculars – I often wonder what the neighbours must think if they ever see me with them – and looked a little closer. I thought “It couldn’t be, but, well, yes, I think it is!”
My husband was outside cutting branches to put in our compost bin. I went out as quietly as I could, and whispered “There’s a… a… domestic bird on the waterfall!” I was in such shock that the words just weren’t coming, and he looked at me like I was crazy. “A domestic bird? Like a chicken?” (Good grief! A chicken?? Really?) “No! Of course not a chicken! Look! It’s bright yellow!” And there, resting peacefully on the rocks, camouflaged by my plants, was a beautiful yellow budgie. Yes, really. Obviously, it had gotten out of its house and had decided that our yard was the place to have a rest.
I called the nearby vet clinic and asked them what to do. They said if we could put a blanket over it and then scoop it up we could bring it in and they could see if they could find its owner. So we got a light white blanket and went outside. We crept up behind it and realized it was sleeping. It was actually sleeping in the sun on the rocks on the edge of our waterfall. I was even able to take pictures of it before we tried to catch it.
We were about to give the poor thing a rude awakening. We had to work fast. We laid the blanket over it, and pulled the edges together. Then the poor budgie woke up, realized it was about to be abducted, and started moving around. I tried to pull the edges of the blanket together, but I panicked because it was moving, and then… the budgie got out and flew away. We looked around to see where it went, and then realized it hadn’t gone far at all. It was on a power line behind our house. We could stand there looking at it, but couldn’t get at it. It was all my fault. I felt terrible. Then, because we were standing there looking at it, it flew away. Right into our apple tree. Well, it was closer, but we still couldn’t get to it. We hoped that if we left it alone it would go back to its sunny spot by the waterfall, but it was no use. Eventually it flew away and didn’t come back.
I went for a walk and saw a prairie falcon in the neighbourhood, and later a crow at the top of a tree making a noise I had never heard before so I assumed it was a mama who had babies up there and was warning me to stay away. Still feeling terrible and so guilty, I prayed that the budgie would find its way home before a bigger bird found it and decided that it would make a nice snack.
I have often wondered whatever happened to that little budgie. I hope it found its way home and while I still feel terrible for scaring it and not being able to take it somewhere that was safe, I am really happy that we were able to be a refuge for a little while. A sunny spot beside running water was the perfect place for a rest on a beautiful day.
And I think about what happens to us when we lose our way – even when we don’t realize it. Do we find a safe place to rest while we consider what to do next? Or do we just keep flying from place to place hoping that the next place will be the right one? I knew someone who used to fly from place to place hoping that his problems wouldn’t follow him. But of course they always do. I hope he finally found a place where he felt safe. I like to think I have learned from that. I have found a place that is safe. And I hope that we all find our place of refuge where we feel safe before we move on to our next adventure.