上周六晚間，我推開後院的門，一隻腳剛剛邁出去，就發現院子裏有點異樣。院子中間擺放的一張小椅上放著一個生鏽的鐵鑄裝飾品，上麵站著一隻鳥，花白的羽毛，那一雙眼睛炯炯有神，這眼睛讓我一下子明白了這是一隻鷹。我趕緊把腳縮回房內，壓低聲音，生怕驚動了門外的鷹，急急地對著樓上喊，"你快下來!"

某人聽出我聲音裏的異樣，趕緊下來了。我告訴他院子好像有一隻鷹，他順著我的指示，看到了那隻鷹，隨後拿起桌上的相機，蹲在門口，哢嚓哢嚓地拍了起來。

看著這隻耷拉著翅膀、好像聳著肩的鷹，我和他的第一感覺都以為這鷹是來我們家後院喝水，掉進後院的一個大水缸裏了(後來發現不是，是隻走散的雛鷹)。鷹一直一動不動地站著，直等到他拍完起身，這起身的動作一定驚到它了，它這才開始挪動地方。我們也因此知道這是一隻雛鷹，尚不會飛。商量了一下，覺得還是不要驚擾它，就把門關上，吃晚飯去了。

吃完飯已經7:30左右了，見鷹挪到了另一扇窗邊的院角，孤零零地站在一根躺倒的樹幹上。透過窗，我看它縮著脖子，夜風吹起它身上零亂的羽毛。夜幕漸漸降臨了，望著它，我心生憐憫，這隻走散的鷹寶寶如何過夜啊? 我開始上網查詢，查到一些建議。我倆打開了車庫門，把鷹趕進了車庫，找來一件舊衣服把它裹著，放進一個大大的紙盒子裏。我切了一些肉絲，某人依照網上的建議，用筷子夾著讓它啄。鷹寶寶很小，尚不知自己吃。很快，一小塊肉吃完了，我又拿來桌上晚間吃剩下的三文魚，取了中間那塊幹淨，我們沒有碰過，又不太有鹹味的肉拿去給它吃，鷹寶寶從開始的掙紮到一口口吃肉吃魚，安靜了下來。我們把盒子留有空隙地蓋好，放到車庫的凳子上，關上了門。黑暗中的鷹寶寶一動不動，沒有了聲響。

安撫好鷹寶寶，已經八點多了。我開始打電話，給animal rehabilitation center留了言，又上網查訊，看到各種意見。十幾分鍾後，電話打回來，說他們不能收留鷹，要求我打電話到Animal Shelter, 電話會轉到警察處等等。我問到，鷹寶寶已經長羽毛了，好像也沒有受傷，要不要放了它就好? 她回答的很堅決，不行，鷹寶寶會有危險。我放下電話立刻開始照辦。果然電話轉到了一位女警察那裏，問明情況後，要了我的地址，告訴我會有人上門。當我問及大概需要多久時，女警察很不耐煩地敷衍著。我不敢多問就掛了。很快被assigned的dispatcher打來電話。當我告訴她，鷹有羽毛，好像也沒有受傷時，她的反應是，鷹媽媽應該在附近看著，讓我們放了它就好。我也不知道她是嫌麻煩還是真的如此，可能一半一半吧。想想這麽黑的天哪有鷹媽媽會來，放了它，讓它在外麵受凍，不如不去折騰它，就讓它在車庫裏暖暖地待一晚吧，等第二天一早就放了它。

心裏有事，第二天周日六點醒來，有點不想起床，但想到天亮了，鷹媽媽會不會來找鷹寶寶，就掙紮著起了床。從冰箱裏拿出昨晚解凍好的牛肉，想喂它一下再放了它。隨後，把車庫裏的盒子拿到院中，打開盒子那一瞬間，見鷹寶寶驚恐萬狀，腳都站不穩地往後退，翅膀張開，嘴也張開著，一副要啄人的樣子。心軟了，顧不上喂它，將盒子一側倒，就放了。它躲進了附近的草叢中。我看著手中切好的牛肉，想想它一定餓了，就把切細的牛肉放在草邊上。不見它吃，隻好蹲下身來，拿起筷子，隔著距離，人前傾，吃力地伸著胳膊，遠遠地遞到它嘴邊。它總算吃了一些。我關了門，上樓準備接著睡覺。然心裏總是記掛著，睡不踏實，時不時從樓上窗戶往下看，看不見它，又下樓來尋它。隻見它呆呆地站在一個角落裏一動不動，眼睛好像睜開著，又好像半閉著，眼珠不時有規則地往上一翻，似一道白光一閃。想必它也在睡回籠覺吧。

直到九點多，不見鷹媽媽蹤影，我找來昨晚dispatcher在我手機上的號碼，又打電話留了言。不見回複。又去查詢當地Animal Shelter開門的時間。好在網上查到的周日開門的，10點開。十點一過，我就拿起電話打去shelter,結果又說不對外，七轉八轉又轉到警察那裏。又是一個女警察，不過聽口音不是同一個人。她答應說過來看看。

11點左右太陽出來了。陽光灑進了後院。鷹寶寶慢慢挪身走到了斑駁的太陽下，曬著，半張開著翅膀，還梳理起了羽毛，那一刻真希望時光就此長此以往，讓它留在院子裏，不再去打擾它了。

十一點半，警察終於姍姍來遲，她戴著用小圍巾做的口罩，從車裏拿下一個大大的鐵籠子，另一隻手拿著一條大大的浴巾。我們幫著她，一番裏外圍攻，把鷹寶寶捉住。警察用浴巾裹著，檢查了鷹翅膀，摸著它的全身，說，不像有受傷，問了我們幾個問題，比如有沒有鷹巢在附近等等，後來覺得這雛鷹太瘦弱了，估計幾天沒有進食，遂決定帶它去看獸醫。最後一句話是，待它檢查完好，要放回這裏。我舉起大拇指說，That's great.

警察的車趴在前門口有一陣子不見開走，想起她的圍巾口罩，想起家中口罩有多，就拿了一盒口罩出去，走到車窗外，車窗關著，她坐在車座上一邊在做筆錄，一邊在講電話。我等了好幾分鍾，等她最後揺下車窗，隔著距離告訴她我有spare face masks, 她隻說一句，她prefer自己的mask。 我禮貌地再次謝了謝她的到來，謝謝她help save the baby hawk，轉身離去。

想起幾年前因為自己養雞，招來警察上門，那個警察非常善意, 兩次近距離的接觸給我留下了極好的印象。而這次，兩位女警察，電話裏的，和上門來看鷹寶寶的，自始自終比較冷漠，連最起碼的一些greeting也沒有，沒有一句謝謝之類的客套話。非常時期，或許我敏感了。

周日是父親節，周六下午收到女兒給某人寄來養moss的玻璃吊籃。傍晚又遇見雛鷹，聽見某人對著它又是吹哨(想說鳥語)，又是hello的，最後居然還說，"來，到Daddy這裏來"。父親節快到了，難不成父愛大發，想念離巢的大鳥，想收留無家可歸的小鳥不成?

All lives matter:)).

後注: 這個雛鷹有可能就是Merlin, 我四年前在家門口的樹上拍到過它捉了兔子的照片。見link. :兔死誰手

It was 7ish pm when I opened the door to the backyard. Just as I was about to step out, something came to my sight. In the middle of the small backyard, on a rusty iron décor stood a bird, its feathers disheveled as if being drenched in the water. It saw me but did not budge. “Wait, it was a hawk”, I told myself.  Holding my breath and backing off, in a suppressed voice, I called out my husband to hurry down.  He snatched the camera from the table, squatted down at the doorstep, and zoomed in. I stood behind him, watching it with the fear that it might fly away any time. But it did not. It stood motionless, with little reactions.  At first we both thought that the bird might come for water and accidentally drenched itself in the tank. But the water surface looked peaceful without any ripple or feather. Then we realized that it was a baby hawk which is unable to fly yet. It could only move uneasily to the next object when we raised our bodies, feeling threatened.  Our presence may pose a danger. So we retreated and closed the door, leaving it alone and not to be disturbed.

By the time we finished dinner, it was 7:30 pm. Craning my neck and looking around two windows, I found the baby hawk still there, changed its place, its claw now clinging to a log right next to a small window. Peering through the window blinds,  I scrutinized it carefully. Baby it may look, it has every feature of a hawk, its feather grizzled, its eyes, deeply set, are predominately round and fierce, and its beaks hooked downward.

It’s getting dark, and there was no sight of a mother hawk hovering over or around. “How is it going to spend the night when the temperature could drop low?”  After some online searches, we started to herd it to the garage, put to a box filled with some warm cloth, fed a few sliced meat to it, and then called the local rehabilitation center.  Phone calls were later made between police and the animal dispatcher. The opinions given were controversial. We decided to leave it in the box for the night and release it early next morning.

When the dawn came, I awoke to the twilight, remembering the baby hawk in the garage. Opening the box in the backyard, I saw a pair of terrified eyes, its claws struggling to stand in vain.  Seized with a pang of pitifulness, I slowly turned the side of the box to ground to let it out. My attempt to feed it with a sliced beef only scared it to the bush nearby.  I dropped some meat to the area, in the hope that it could pick it up itself. Ten minutes passed, nothing happened. Tiptoeing to the other side of the bush, through a narrow tiny opening, I saw a petrified body, eyes looking darkly at me in a distance. I bent down myself almost to the ground, stretching the long chopsticks with meat dangling as close to its beaks as my arms could extend. Timidly it snapped the meat from the chopsticks, gulfing it down one after another.

The baby hawk was finally in the possession of a police, who believed the stray baby hawk was suffering from famine for days. We were both relieved at placing it in a better hand.