Over the years, I have created and perfected a small bird garden outside my window. One winter I took the screen out of my window to make filling my window feeder easier. I now didn’t have to tramp out of doors in the snow every morning with the birds’ usual rations of seeds. (I had learned to give only a daily cupful of sunflower seeds after I realized that no matter how much I put out, it was always gone by noon.)
It was then that the idea occurred to me. Why not open the window just enough to pass my hand through. Then, depositing a small amount of seed into the palm of my hand, I would wait until one of my feathered friends landed and made a meal of a shiny sunflower seed or crunchy peanut. I would try it sometime….
When I did try it, I was not happy with the results. No fluffy chickadee landed on my hand, and for my patience, I received only a quintet of frozen fingers as my reward. However, I was not totally daunted and decided to try again. This time, too, I withdrew my frozen hand from the outdoors with a glum look at the discourteous little birds who preferred my feeder to my hand. For said hand, even though it had been protruding forth into their view, had not dampened their desire to land at my feeder, and this they did, giving my hand only a glimpse now and then to make sure that it wasn’t a trap of some sort.
I don’t know what it was about the third try. Maybe I waited longer than usual, or maybe they were getting used to my hand. Whatever it was, I removed my hand with a smile a mile wide on my face and ran to tell my family that I HAD HELD A BIRD!
Here is how it happened. The chickadees had been more numerous than last time, and had not seemed as nervous. After a few minutes, a couple of chickadees began to flutter near enough for me to feel the wind from their wings. One landed on a short shepherd’s crook nearby and, after getting his bearings, flitted onto my hand! It sat for just a second; the little bird was too nervous to do anything more. However, I was delighted. Soon one actually landed on my hand and ate a seed! You will know how I felt only if you’ve heard of so many people holding birds and never gotten to hold one yourself!
I called my family, and we got a couple of pictures. The next day I renewed my bird befriending, and I counted eighty-seven times that birds, both chickadees and Tufted Titmice, landing one by one on my hand.
I continued to hand-feed the birds, even letting some of my friends try, always remembering to wash my hands afterwards. But I have never forgotten the very first time I felt the little claws on my cold fingers and the downy fur on my palm.