The Easter Budgie

It was about 8 years ago, on a cold, snowy autumn day, when we finally caught the little parakeet that had been at our feeder with a flock of sparrows for two weeks. We put up signs, but no one claimed her, so we named her "Flappy," and she has been our birdy buddy ever since. She outlived the mate we bought for her by two years (so far), but had never laid a single egg. Today, I saw her on the bottom of the cage, and feared the worst: Budgie's don't live for long, and we did not know how old she was when we found her. Instead of dying, however, she surprised us by hissing protectively over a clutch of three tiny translucent eggs. Will wonders never cease?

When we first captured her, Trip honored her with a poem...I can only remember this part: "Her name is Flappy, and I can't see a minute when she ain't!" The name still suits her.