Last summer, Walter was sitting on the veranda at sunset and heard a wren singing in the trees. Within a few minutes, the wren appeared on the patio less than ten feet away from him. Walter sat very still while the wren hopped around the birdbath and potted plants. Suddenly, the little bird flew up to the lip of a hanging pot and dove headfirst into the plant. Walter watched until nightfall to see if the wren would fly out of the pot, but he never did.
Three days in a row, Walter went outside to watch for his new friend, and each evening the wren sang to him from the trees, hopped around the patio, and flew into the hanging plant at twilight to spend the night. On the fourth day, I joined Walter on the veranda and witnessed this amazing ritual.
We named the wren Winky, and Walter, being an accomplished whistler, was able to imitate Winky’s bedtime song. I was fascinated at the conversations they had before Winky approached the patio to get into his cozy bed.
As winter approached, we knew the hanging plant would wither with the first frost. Worried that Winky would not have a place to sleep, we bought an artificial plant and arranged it in the dirt of the hanging pot to replace the real foliage. We added more soil and pressed a small indentation in the center for Winky’s bed. The next afternoon, we saw Winky inspecting the newly furnished pot in the daylight.
At twilight, we sat on the veranda wondering if Winky approved of the apartment remodel. When our little wren showed up to sing his song and Walter whistled back to him, we watched Winky fly into his new home. Winky has been staying with us for two years now. What a delightful guest!
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