We recently had a rather curious visitor at our house. A male cardinal decided that our back porch door was enemy number one. For several days on end, from dawn to dusk, this bird persistently postured, threatened, tormented, assaulted and attacked our sliding glass door.
I sat eating my breakfast on successive days, pondering what had gotten into the little creatures head. The cardinal was our evening entertainment at the dinner table that week, as the kids and adults discussed ways to discourage him from his futile endeavors. We, of course, dubbed him ‘Don Quixote’. We told our children what we could remember of Cervantes’ epic tale, “The Man from La Mancha”. My daughter was particularly keen to understand why the old man went tilting, or jousting, at windmills. Why didn't he have anything better to do? My son was simply impressed by the concept of electing to become a knight, and finding gallant and noble acts to perform.
So, we attempted to scare D.Q. away, mostly out of fear that he would exhaust himself, or knock himself out flying into the glass repeatedly - and then be gobbled up by a greedy cat. We flapped and waved our hands in his direction, but these actions seemed only to strengthen his resolve. We taped tin-foil strips to the outside, hoping that would cause him to reconsider his pursuit. However, this might have been viewed as an escalation in the conflict, further justifying the bird’s righteous anger. I envied Don’s fortitude, but wished I comprehended what he was fighting for.
No one was around when Don Quixote finally ended his week-long campaign. There were no ruby-colored feathers to be found, so we all hoped for the best, in terms of his health and well-being. Cardinal Don’s peace treaty with the glass door was as unilateral as his declaration of war. I cannot help but feel that this bird’s "6 Day War" mirrored much of our own daily experience. What are we fighting for? How can we end the insanity of striving towards goals that are nonsensical and without purpose? How may we find peace and comfort in a hostile world that stands as stolid and incomprehensible as a sliding glass door?
