Page 14 - Animal Kin

One day I was in a friend’s back yard. It was summer and I was by their pool. Gimlet was with me, standing on top of his cage. Suddenly a bird flew over us and it startled him. He took off flying. At the end of this yard there was a steep hill that lead down to a river. As he flew in that direction, he quickly was out over treetops on that hillside even though he hadn’t flown upwards. I rushed behind him, trying to keep my eye on him but it was hard because the hill was so steep. I finally found myself on level ground. I called and called
him and then listened for his loud chirp. Far in the distance I thought I heard something so I went that way, still calling and waiting for his response. I loved that bird and was so afraid he would be lost forever if I didn’t find him quickly.
I finally found the place where his voice was coming
from. He was way in the top of a big tree! Without thinking about it I put my arms around the trunk and made my way up as far as I could climb. He was up higher than I could go, in small branches at the top. I spoke to him quietly and tried to convince him to come to me. He was scared from his flight and from being in the big world all alone and he would creep toward me and then look like he about to fly again. Slowly though, he made his way down to me. As soon as I had him