It’s deceptively cool in here.

The air conditioning units are blasting and the air is filled with drying, freezing, ‘fake’ air. I know it’s ridiculously hot outside and walking past the poor Security Guard on my way up the steps to my office, I hardly dared meet his sweat-drawn face.

But still he smiled widely and told me to have a good day.

I asked him if he was going to have to sit out there for long and he shook his head. Only another ten minutes then he’d be back later to feed and water the birds…

Now that interested me enough not to take refuge at my desk.

Asking him what he fed them I was surprised to see his whole demeanour change as he explained how ‘Sheryl and Russell’ flew down to sit on the fence by him every day and take bread, cold meat etc from his hand.

Sheryl and Russell?

He grinned and told me to ‘think about it’…

I tapped my forehead as he went into paroxysms of gravelly laughter until I finally got it…Crows!

I rolled my eyes at him because he obviously had made that joke last for some time.

I asked if the numerous Red Kites that wheeled and screeched their circles above their territories on site, ever came down to compete with his normal dining patrons.

He shook his head, sighing wearily, explaining that they were the cat-walk models attracting the most attention, looking beautiful but far too worried about their plumage to do battle for food. He obviously had his favourites and the crows topped the guest list for him.

‘The guys call me The Bird Man.’ Proudly he sat up taller on his tiny seat as I grinned and told him he’d honestly made my day.

Many years ago I just did not appreciate the beauty and variance of birds.

I have always loved animals but birds seemed to pass by my childish imagination.

Is it an age thing?

Maybe it’s a Save Our Planet realisation thing…. we’ve all been blind to nature and yet with so much changing, we are the species that the birds will be taking for granted.

Not really noticing as we diminish in numbers.

We will be the insignificant ones that they watch fade away.

Maybe they’ll feed us on a fence…if we’re lucky or maybe if we’re appealing enough.

Somehow I doubt the latter.