The Autumn Hatching

It was an early, autumn November day in Vermont. Once I stepped outside, the sun greeted me with a gleaming glare. The light breeze rapidly slapped me in the face. Glancing away, I strolled over to where the leaf grabbers were. Mother told me it was my job to rake the leaves every morning. I reluctantly agreed as I was an obedient child despite seeing it as a monotonous job. 

As I sauntered to the leaf grabbers, I heard a bird chirp. It stopped, then repeated again and again. I had heard many chirping birds in my lifetime. On the other hand, this was different. It was less of a chirp and more of a cry for help. My curious mind told me to investigate it. My ear perked up as I pursued the noise, my feet were crushing the leaves beneath. Suddenly, I came to a halt as I eyed the source.  

In front of my feet was a baby bird, a newly born baby bird. Its eyes were not yet open, and it had wisps down on its body. 

“What are you doing here? Where is your mama?” I bent down to take a closer look at the hatchling. It hatched out of its egg not long ago. However, I couldn’t spot its nest anywhere. 

“Where’s your nest? Are you all alone?” The bird couldn’t comprehend what I was saying, so in a way, I was speaking to myself as I tried to brainstorm what to do.  

“My teacher told me to leave hatchlings alone, claiming that your mother is somewhere. But I can’t even locate your nest!” After pondering my options, I decided it was best to leave. I didn’t want to intervene in the hatchling’s life. 

I would stand and swerve simultaneously. But I quickly stopped in my tracks, my ears picking up a new noise. It wasn’t chirping or a gust of wind. Instead, it was a meow. My eyes widened, realizing the obvious. It was the neighbor’s cat seeking a quick snack. Cookie’s green eyes glinted off the sunlight, eyeing the hatchling. It was a mere few feet away from its vulnerable prey. 

That's when I realized that I had to make an important decision. Either I could abandon the hatchling here or bring it to safety. At first glance, it seems like an easy decision. But in reality, it was more complex. If I left the hatchling, there was a high probability the cat would have its desired meal. On the other hand, if I took the hatchling, where exactly would I take it? I couldn’t spot its nest or mother anywhere. 

A train of thought and possibilities was running through my head. I knew Cookie and played with her at the neighbor's house. She was obsessed with chasing sticks and yarns and eating raw beef. I stopped thinking as my brain registered my thoughts,

“Wait! Sticks! Cookie loves sticks!” I frantically looked around for the nearest stick and unfortunately couldn’t detect one! As I repeatedly spun around to find a stick, my hand rammed into a branch. The branch broke in half and fell down to the ground. I beamed,

“A stick!” I bent down and snatched the fallen branch before throwing it as hard as I could toward Cookie. Cookie quickly forgot about the helpless hatchling and started chasing the stick. When I turned my attention back to the hatchling, I was startled with a pleasant surprise,

With the hatchling was its mother. I could see the mother dropping worms into the hatchling’s mouth. I beamed, feeling content with myself. It turns out I did the right actions, which ultimately paid off. 

I would turn around and start striding back to the house. The light glared at my face. The wind gently nudged me along the road as the leaves danced beside me. Despite not raking the leaves, I accomplished something better. I walked back to my house with a proud, ear-to-ear smile. I knew I could never forget the Autumn Hatchling.