Bird Whisperer

They must have decided I was worth knowing to befriend me, when I took time out from my busy schedule to help them gather worms.
Mistrustful at first, they kept their distance. So as not to startle them I wore the same outfit every time I visited them. My aim to become so familiar, they would come to understand I posed no threat.

Secretly I hoped they would welcome me into the flock. I was desperate to show them the wings I kept hidden. Keeping a secret is hard so with time forgot I had wings, until the birds came to remind me. My longing to share with them was great so I began to leave a trail of feathers in my wake.

I became a masterful magician conjuring nesting material, which they gratefully took. Soon they were eating out of my hand; plucking my feathers. They found them hiding underneath my jumper.

Gradually curiosity got the better of them. One by one they slipped inside my hat, made a nest in which to rear their young. I supply them with the softest feathers. In return they stay, regularly preening neglected feathers.

I relax my face muscles, happy the birds know my secret. My scorn turns to serenity and sometimes my face registers surprise; that birds live under my hat, nestled in my hair.