Dear Kid,

The Puppy and I saved a worm today.

We were out for our morning walk (as we do in the morning), and saw a robin yanking up a worm for breakfast. The worm seemed to be exceptionally reluctant to be eaten; the robin seemed to be exceptionally intent on eating it.

We were curious, the Puppy and I. So we gently, ever so gently, took a few steps forward to get a better look-see.

We did not intend to deprive the robin of his morning repast. We did not intend to rescue the worm.

But the robin got a little spooked and took off and the worm dove underground. The robin didn’t go far and in no time at all was chomping on some bugs and listening for worms.

Listening for worms? One of the world’s Top 10 Silent Creatures?

Apparently so.

Birds use sight (oooh, look! Worm tail!), sound (me thinks I hear a worm!), scent (fe-fi-fo-fum, I smell worm!), vibrations (the earth is shaking! It must be a worm!), and Google maps to find their prey.

Worms on the other hand have far more limited skills. They eat dirt so you really can’t expect highly developed brains. Worms can feel vibrations but too often instead of interpreting the vibration correctly (dang! It’s bird! Dive! Dive!), they poke their heads up (forgetting that they are blind) to see what’s going on (Hey, wanna be friends?).

While the worm we saved didn’t stick around to award us the Badge of Worm Savior, we waved good morning to its tail and went on our way.

Love, Mom