Article March 26, 2007 Issue

BROTHER BIRDS

SHARON CARPER

THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR

I love standing on the cold , blustery train platform in downtown Washington, DC, and watching the phenomenon of gentle, tiny birds looking for perches.

Gazing at the government buildings down the street, I see support wires attached to large rooftop antennas. Sitting on these angled wires are dozens of tiny black (or are they brown?) birds, crammed together in perfectly straight but animated lines.

What delights me, though, is the illusion that there is no more room on those wires, until another group or even a single fellow arrives and needs space. All the little guys scoot closer together, making room for one more. Then they all twitter and wiggle, settle down, and the pattern begins again. There doesn't appear to be one more inch of space, but miraculously, when more mates appear, everyone scoots down the wire or moves closer together, and there is always room.

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