The Girl and the Sparrow

Maya loves her garden more than anywhere else, and one sunny morning she stands beside her grandpa, Grandpa Lee, ready to plant something new. With her small wooden trowel and green gardening gloves, she digs little holes in the soft brown soil and places native shrubs gently in the ground. Grandpa Lee explains that these plants, which have always grown in this place, will give food and shelter to birds and bees. Maya waters each shrub with care and waits to see who will come.

The next morning a tiny sparrow with streaked feathers, a cream belly and a black bib lands on the new shrubs. Maya names him Pip, and the two become friends as she sits very still and watches him find seeds and insects among the leaves. Soon Pip brings another sparrow, and then another, until a whole flock is hopping and chirping in the garden. Robins, blue jays and finches arrive too, and Maya learns how the shrubs provide berries, seeds and safe branches for rest. She saves her pennies to buy one more flowering bush and plants it beside the others. This tale by Çınar BİBER can be read on Masalcı Baba.