Blame it on the Rain

At least daily, often several times each day I push the button that closes the garage door. Usually I am inside the house by the time the door reaches the bottom of its travel and closes completely. Something distracted me, perhaps it was the rain which is so unusual here. I may have taken longer than normal to avoid stepping in the wet areas of the walkway. But whatever the cause, I heard the door reverse direction and start moving up again. I stepped back inside the garage and pressed the button again. The door started down, gently contacted the car, and reversed course. I have a marker dangling from the ceiling to mark the correct spot to stop. I walked back to the car, and noticed that it wasn’t in far enough, that was why the door was hitting the car and wouldn’t close. As I was getting my keys out and preparing to move the car a couple of feet, something caught my ear. The characteristic sound that gives them their name – a humming bird was inside the garage and was trying to exit through a closed window! I went over to him – it – and carefully maneuvered him so that he was able to find and then exit through the open garage door.
In May, we oversaw the growth and fledging of a clutch, can 2 be a clutch? of hummingbirds It wa s a few feet away in our entry way. Could this be one of the fledglings, or perhaps even the mother? It was impossible to know. What was certain is that the hummingbird would not have survived the night in the garage. The temperature was too low and there was no food available. So, the chain of events: Hummingbirds were hatched and fledged in our entry way in May, in January I didn’t park the car far enough inside the garage so that the door would close, it was raining so I altered my usual route to the front door, I heard the door reverse and return to the fully open position, I tried again, I saw that it wasn’t in far enough, I went to move it in further, I saw the hummingbird, I caused it to escape through the open garage door, it was saved. My good deed. Or was it some kind of avian divine intervention? Am I now responsible for the life of this small bird, should I identify it and follow it around. Of course I’ll be certain to refill my hummingbird feeders whenever they become empty now. What happens to a person who saves the life of someone or something and fails to take responsibility for them? Usually it is the one whose life is saved that must take the responsibility for the saver, but with such an imbalance in size the responsibility must shift to the rescuer right? What should I do?
Protection
So far, I have chased the crows away. I watch for them and run outside and throw rocks when they come into the yard. Next week I’ll get an air rifle. Then there are the cats – nasty things that prowl around just waiting for a poor hapless bird to drop his defenses for only an instant. I know what they are thinking, you can read it in their pinched, furry little faces. Cats are evil and would eat us if only they were bigger. The resent our having shrunk them up so that they are no longer a hazard to us humans. They want to revert to the wild and grow again, the way they were tens of thousands of years ago. That’s why they simply tolerate us now, and why they are so distant and so arrogant and so superior. Who would want a cat in their home? They scheme. Whenever they don’t get their way, they begin to plot their revenge. They may cause you to slip and fall down the stairs. They may bring you “gifts” like dead mice or snakes – but those are not really gifts, they are proofs of prowess, a warning that they can and will take you down whenever they please, so mind your manners. Why do you think so many people are allergic to cats? It’s the self preservation instinct kicking in – a warning to stay away from them, and it’s sent from your immune system! Why else would cats scratches become inflamed and infected. Another warning to keep away from them! And why else are kittens so loveable? It’s to keep you from drowning them, like you know you should – and all at once they are grown into full fledged cats.