KIKI AND THE CATBIRD

I'd been sitting on my back deck trying to enjoy a beautiful summer morning when I couldn't take it anymore. “Okay, you two! It's time to knock it off!” I cried.

Steven looked over at me. “Who are you talking to?”

I pointed to the catbird sitting on our grill top, screeching at the top of it's lungs at the open window that our son's cat, Kiki was sitting in. “They've been at it for the last twenty minutes!”

Steven looked over. “Huh, I hadn't noticed.” He went back to reading the newspaper.

“You hadn't noticed?” I got up to shoo the bird away. “How can you not hear that!” The catbird's wailing was deafening.

Steven shrugged his shoulders. “I don't know, I guess I just learned to block out things I don't want to hear.”

I turned back to look at him. “Well, there's a conversation we might need to have.”

He looked up from his paper and smiled. “What? I'm sorry, I didn't hear you.”

“Yeah, right.” I laughed and turned to shoo the catbird again. But as I got closer to the grill I could see Kiki wasn't yelling at the bird at the same time. They were taking turns. I stopped and looked over at Steven. “They're having a conversation!”

“What?” Steven looked over at me.

I pointed to the window. “I swear, I think they're having a conversation!” I watched as the catbird cried several times then stopped. Then it was Kiki's turn to meow a few times then stop and wait for the catbirds response.

“Oh, great.” Steven shook his head. “Now you're going to tell me what you think they're saying to each other, aren't you?”

“Well, I could.” I began waving my arms until the catbird saw me and flew away to the nearest tree branch. “But that would mean I'd have had to listen to that screeching for a few more minutes and I can't do it.” I went back to sit in my chair and listen to the pretty sounds of birds chirping by the feeders. “Ah...isn't that better?”

“Sure.” Steven handed me a section of the paper.

It had only been a few minutes before the catbird was back on the grill yelling at Kiki. “Oh come on!” I cried.

“The bird's probably got a nest nearby.” he looked at me and shrugged his shoulders. “It's just doing what come naturally to it.”

We continued to listen to the screeching a few minutes more. “Oh, I can't take this!” I got up and went to railing of the deck to scream at the bird. “The cat is locked in the house! There's no way she's coming out! Give it up, she's not a threat!” Both the catbird and Kiki looked over at me, then the bird flew away again.

When I turned around Steven was looking at me. “So you decided to be a part of their conversation?”

“Hey, it worked didn't it!” I smiled as I sat back down.

Moments later the catbird landed on the grill again and started back up. Steven looked over at me.

I held up my hand, “Don't say anything.” I warned him.

Steven just shook his head. “What would I say? I don't hear anything.”