How to make a Bird Comfortable

... how to make a dead bird comfortable ...

"Was there a funeral for a bird out at the lake?" 

Rebecca Johnson wanted to know more after seeing the photos that will be in this blogpost.

Yes, a dead woodpecker, found in cabin and the bird had made a mess.

Children had different ideas about what to do.

At first the bird was going to be buried in the lawn and then some adult sent the kids into the trees with it.

Previous to this I had extended the wing to let the kids see what it looked like.

Then the kids weren’t allowed to touch it with their hands.

Michael wanted to bury it right away, but we thought we’d wait a day.

The next day Alice put on gloves and asked if she could touch it.

I said that would be fine.

I was gardening and at one point looked over and Betty was pulling up the moss/grass near the tree with her hands.

This looks like it could be a riff on
Ophelia floating down the lake. 

I asked her what she was doing and she said she was digging a hole.

I told her I thought we should do it over by the trees and with a shovel.

Alice said no, she was trying to make the bird comfortable. She was collecting flowers and leaves to put around it.

Then there was a discussion (argument?) between Michael and Alice. Michael wanted to bury the bird and Alice wanted to make it comfortable.

... the bird in the hole ...

We settled on putting the bird into the hole (it turns out Michael had dug a small one the day before) and then letting Alice cover it with leaves and flowers.

It think the bird was very comfortable.

I forgot how small the hole was for the grave.  I think Michael must have dug it with his hands. There were no tools around.

~Mary