The Robin and the Mourning Dove

Vicious and mean those two stray dogs if not for my fence the female grey would have quickly killed my two old dogs. She angrily bark and looked as if she would lunge through the chain link fence. I yelled at her in a booming voice with authority. She looked up at me our eyes met and she left with tan behind her tail. Out in the yard I first saw the robin, lying on his side teeth marks sunk into his orange breast and back. He looked as if he was taking flight but alas only his little soul soar into the heavens. A few steps away by my wooden plank fence, where the day lilies bout to burst into full bloom, lay the mourning dove at peace. Dignified by a quick kill she lay the hues on her head glow like a halo in the sparkle of the morning light. Those dogs just eager for the kill left them intact. Did their little friends fly to the refuge of tree tops? I gather my shovel and a small gift box and scooped them up, first the robin then the dove and buried them in my garden with irises tall and white had flowered. On top I placed a few colorful rocks. Sad? Nature is cruel against her wondrous beauty. She reminds us how fragile life is. How unexpected death can be. The earth is a miracle of life. Was this the robin part of the pair that hopped around my yard? Splashed in my bird bath and happily chirp together on my wooden plank fence. Yes she was one of the flock of doves that gather on my grassy lawn to feed upon the bugs and seeds and coo up in the branches of our neighborhood trees. Late that evening I saw a single robin perched upon my plank fence, it's head turn side to side. It looked and stared a single chirp and flew into the sky. I did not notice those mourning doves and did not recall their coos. Did they know their friend or mate did not escape? Life goes on the sun still shines, the rain still falls at night the glow of the moon. My irises that night seemed to droop ever slight towards the colorful rocks as if in prayer for a lost friend. I like to think that angels enjoy the company of our little feather friends. So together they can fly upon heavens glorious blue sky, the robin and the mourning dove.