Teacher and the Baby Bird - Jay Wilson (win 10 ebook reader txt) 📗

Teacher and the Baby Bird
by jay wilson ©2006

Little Bobby came running up to his teacher in the playground. He was so excited and held something in his hand. It was a tiny, baby bird.

“Oh look what I have found by the tree in the dirt.” he said as he lifted the almost featherless bird up for teacher to see.

“My goodness”, the teacher said. “Where did you find it? You said under the tree?”

“Yes, Teacher Pam. He was lying on the ground and his Momma was gone so I took him. I named him George. Can I keep him?”

Teacher Pam knew keeping the baby bird was not a good idea. She had to find a way to show little Bobby the reasons he couldn’t keep the little bird but she also knew it needed to be his decision. He had to understand why little boys and girls shouldn’t keep small animals and birds when they find them on the ground.

“Bobby, do you think the baby bird has a momma or a daddy who would miss him if their little bird was taken away?” asked Teacher Pam. “Do you think they will cry if little George is gone and they never see him again?”

Little Bobby looked down at the bird. It didn’t have many feathers because it was just a baby bird. And it was holding its mouth open like it wanted something to eat. It looked helpless.

“But I want to keep Little George. I know he is hungry”, replied Bobby. “I can feed him some of my snack and if he is cold, I can put him in some little clothes so he will be warm.”

Teacher smiled and leaned down to get a closer look at the baby being held in Bobby’s small hands. “But you can’t just feed him snacks. He doesn’t eat hot dogs or ice cream. He only eats bird food like seeds, worms, and bugs. And he needs to be with his momma so he can grow feathers. He can’t wear shirts and pants. And I know he would never like to wear shoes.”

She could see that Bobby was thinking about all these questions. He was starting to understand why no one should ever pick up a baby bird or even a baby rabbit. At the same time, Teacher Pam could also see the little boy loved the bird.

“Bobby, what will you do if Little George gets sick because he misses his family. How would you feel if you were taken away from your family?”

Bobby was in deep thought. Slowly he looked up at Teacher and said, “I think he needs to be with his family. But Teacher, he was on the ground and I don’t know where his home is.”

Bobby had a sad face and as he looked up to Teacher, a single tear ran down his cheek. With a trembling voice he requested, “Would you help me find his home?”

Teacher smiled. This was a big lesson for one so small as Bobby to have to learn. And she was proud of him. He was doing the right thing by wanting to put the baby bird back. But now they had to find the little bird’s home.

“Bobby, can you show me where you found Little George?”

The small boy turned and walked out into the playground and near the swings. He pointed at the ground and spoke. “There … I found him there.”

Teacher Pam looked up into the tree’s branches and sure enough there was a small nest made of twigs and leaves. The teacher picked the little boy up and told him to place the little bird back into his nest. He did.

Everyday Bobby would lead his class out near the tree and looked to make sure Little George was okay. They could see his head looking up, waiting for his Momma to bring a worm or a bug for him to eat. And just like Teacher said, his Momma gave Little George a full set of feathers so he could stay warm.

Then one day it happened. The small bird didn’t stick his head up. He was gone. Teacher Pam worried what Bobby and the other children would think.

There was a silence as all the children started looking around the playground. They thought maybe he had fallen out of his nest again. Teacher knew the little bird had grown enough that he had flown away like all birds do in time.

“Look! There is Little George. He is up there. He is flying”, shouted Bobby, pointing in the sky.

Everyone was looking in the direction of where Bobby was pointing. A flock of geese was flying overhead.

Excitedly Bobby was shouting over and over, “Look, he is with his friends. Little George is flying with his friends.”

Teacher Pam smiled as she watched the children all jumping and shouting. Some were shouting goodbye and some were hollering for Little George to come down and play. But it was Bobby who touched the teacher’s heart. Quietly he said, “I love you” as the birds flew out of sight.

Teacher knew that wasn’t Little George but who was she to tell a little boy it wasn’t? As Bobby raised his tiny arm to wave bye to his friend ... so did Teacher.

Publication Date: 02-08-2010

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