I’d like to welcome the new additions to the family: Mr. & Mrs. Fluff-n-Puff. They are a nice couple. They have a few kids they are currently educating on the grander things in life such as flying, tree branch hopping, and the dangers of other birds and creatures. Yes, the Fluff-n-Puff family is none other than a couple of crows. No, no, don’t say it or think it. I was just like you. I couldn’t stand crows so give it a chance before judging a book by its cover. I too thought they were such a menace and an ugly bother to nature; nothing but nasty scavengers who cawed annoyingly and, well, how could Poe be wrong when he spoke of the eerie raven? Boy, had I a lot to learn.
Where to begin? Perhaps to remind myself, after much research, a crow and a raven are two different entirely birds. Duh!
The name… Where on earth did I come up with such a silly name? Besides the fact I’m goofy, this tiny pair is a bit ruffled on the rump area and not at all the smooth togetherness you would see on other birds crows or otherwise. It was the first thing I had noticed. I was thinking, “Boy oh boy, these two birds are terribly fluffy in their rump compared to other birds.” They were easy to point out even from the other few crows that would dare come to our front lane because of this feature. They had a fluff here, and a puff there, all out of sorts. Even the top parts of their legs were fluffy and puffy, and so it was obvious, this was them.
Over the past couple of weeks, our relationship progressed quite rapidly. I would throw the heel out of a bag of bread out and go back inside, listening to them “Caw! Caw!” behind me and think nothing of it. One day, I walked to the small path at the end of the walk to break up a piece of bread, and there she was (she being the smaller of the two), up on the line, looking and waiting. I simply said, “Hi there.” I finished tossing the bits and started to walk to the porch. I glanced back and there she was, right behind me on the ground, picking up a piece then she froze and looked at me. I looked away and continued up the porch. It struck me how brave she was without really “knowing” me. I then started to make it a point to save the heels of bread, stale crackers, etc., to share with them. I began to go out in the morning, walk to the end of the path, make a “kissing” noise like you do to call a dog (don’t ask why, even I don’t know), and three little, short whistles, kind of my own “call” to them as if it was a secret knock so they would know it was me. Sure enough, she would arrive, or both, within a minute or so, patiently waiting on the line above or the half dead tree across the lane. Up on my porch I would go to sip a tea, and watch the pair pick up as many tiny pinches of bread as they could stuff in their mouths at once. I can’t tell you how entertaining it was. I even had started to put bits on the fence post to see how much really watched what I did. Sure enough she would grab them last, almost as if to pick them up in the order I tossed them. It was better than a game show for sure! We were really quite tickled.
Before I knew it, I was being beckoned in the morning with a constant “Caw!” as if to say, “Hey! It’s morning! We’re waiting!” It became a morning ritual very quickly. I would walk out, scatter the bits as she patiently waited, I would say good morning, walk back up to my perch, and proceed to chat with her as she gathered the goodies. It didn’t take long at all for us both to accept one another and feel a bond of sorts. This might sound odd but I assure you, it is not, especially for this time of year for crows, to accept anyone or anything. They are very protective during mating, nesting, and fledging months (April through to June). They will kill other birds and attack other animals, including humans (no, don’t be absurd, not kill humans), for being in their nesting territory. Yet, for some reason, and I don’t believe it was for the bread scraps, this couple decided to accept a pair of humans.
Now, before you go all, yeah so or what’s the big deal, I wish to share some interesting facts I’ve learned recently. Did you know crows are more intelligent than chimps not to mention some humans? They are a highly evolved tool makers and problem solvers; on the level in these traits, like humans. What does this mean? It means they can see a problem and solve it in their heads without first failing. I mean come on! How freaking amazing is that? It also means they can make tools from strings, sticks, etc., and build their own tool, warp it, manipulate it, to work to their benefit, to achieve a goal. Preferably food, but nonetheless amazing! Another thing, they will collect bundles of food and cache them. What does this mean? Think of the cache on your computer or cell phone. They collect the food and store it in a temporary spot until they use it. They will hide it under grass and twigs, in gutters, stuff it in dirt, and have you ever seen them dunking their food in water? It’s pretty neat. They can’t take water back to the nest so they dunk their food in water and take the soggy concoction back. Umm…yeah, not such a dumb old black bird! Also, did you know they will recognize a human, map their face, and can spot the same human in a group of hundreds or even thousands? First off, why would they care to, right? Read on please.
Outside of their cool factor and all the nifty little things I’ve learned about them by observation and research, they have reminded me of my spiritual side and a soul deep bond we all have with nature and take for granted as selfish humans. Although these entertaining birds were fun to watch, and still are, they had begun to appreciate and value me and Kyle on a different level we seem to be slow on as humans. Crazy at it sounds; Mr. & Mrs. Fluff-n-Puff started to follow us and talk/caw to us, and even make it a point to caw hysterically at us when the neighborhood cat or a stray dog was in the vicinity, and not at a distance, but within 10 ft. looking right at us like protective parents. Suddenly... Light bulb moment! Duh!! The humans are always the last to get it.
Now, think on this cute little story and think about life, family, friends, all the misconceptions we have about other people, races, religions, even what we humans have been told about animals. The silly, ridiculous notion that one religion hates all other religions and so goes it for the religious following, all politicians are crooks, a white man is better than a black man, men are superior to women, cats and dogs are natural enemies, a cat will naturally kill a bird, and so on. Let me tell you point blank how wrong you are! How wrong I was! How wrong the world is in sticking with repeating the same cycle of misconceptions alive.
Take a lesson from Mother Nature herself…we can all live in harmony. We were meant to!
Sometimes it takes seeing something presented to us in a different manner for it to sink in even if we “knew” we had the “right” answer.
We hear all the time phrases such as: taking little for granted, don’t miss it ‘til it’s gone, can’t see the forest for the trees. Wow! Can you believe it would take a small family of crows to make one see nothing should be taken for granted, even the scavengers for they serve a purpose, and maybe they aren’t the scavengers we thought originally; that truly valuing what you have, makes you cherish it when it’s gone instead of mourning it; that realizing the forest is a masterpiece of individual trees with families of creatures who still would take us rotten, selfish, undeserving humans “under their wing” and think to protect us. To say wow, does not even touch the flabbergasted facture! Truly, absolutely, wonderfully, exciting on a level of euphoria and astonishment is even cutting it short.
Funny, isn’t it, how you are taught positive lessons in life when you least expect them, and they have always been there…we just couldn’t see what was right in front of our noses for our own egos.
Really, what did these crows have to gain? Nothing. When did life for us humans become a tug of war? A give and take? A “I’ll screw you before you screw me” mentality? Where did all the compassion and genuine concern and care go?
This is to you, Mr. & Mrs. Fluff-n-Puff…thank you for your generosity and grace, and allowing me to share a piece of your life. You have reminded me life gives you, and provides for you, everything you need. All the rest is details. You can sort them out, hide them, share them, screech at them, or accept them. There is always a choice for the better good, always a choice to improve, but the choice is always up to you. Those that really matter will never fail you regardless, and those who fail themselves will continue to call you the failure. Just be and the rest will come unexpectedly…pleasantly.
I’m certainly not saying go out and adopt some crows or anything, but I am saying, go out! Appreciate a deep breath; close your eyes to the wind in your hair, the hot sun on your face, the water at your ankles, the cool grass beneath your feet. Listen to the birds, watch them dance in the breeze, see them flutter their wings and know, there is a personality there we as humans all take for granted. We are by far not the smartest species on the planet but the most selfish and ungrateful and prideful but for what grander reason but to be so. We should all take a lesson or twenty from Mother Nature. Simplicity isn’t simple and intricate isn’t rocket science.
Can’t we all just get along? Yes, we can. Can we all stop judging based on what our society has drilled into our generations? Yes, we can. Are you brave enough to try? Absolutely. Set an example. Lead the way and they will gladly follow your positive, happy path.
“Look at the trees, look at the birds, look at the clouds, look at the stars... and if you have eyes you will be able to see that the whole existence is joyful. Everything is simply happy. Trees are happy for no reason; they are not going to become prime ministers or presidents and they are not going to become rich and they will never have any bank balance. Look at the flowers - for no reason. It is simply unbelievable how happy flowers are.” ~Osho
Top: Mr. Fluff-n-Puff
Bottom: Mrs. Fluff-n-Puff
