Our yard is home to a number of robin, blue jay, and grackle families. The other morning I found a robin fledgling chilling in the middle of our front yard. He stayed so still and let me walk right up to him to take a photo.

That same morning I found another fledgling, this time dead in our ditch. It was the second one I’ve found this month and it’s heartbreaking.

I’m keeping an eye on the fledgling that’s camped out in our front yard and hoping and praying he makes it to adulthood. We have multiple outdoor cats in our neighborhood so I’m constantly worried my birds are going to be eaten.

I realize I probably shouldn’t care this much about wild birds, but I do. I want them to thrive. I want our yard to be a safe place for birds to raise their young and live their lives. If there’s anything I can do to stop another fledgling from dying, I will do it.

I know fledglings aren’t completely helpless and their parents are probably nearby keeping an eye on them, but it’s so hard to remember. Especially when you see a little fluffy bird cheeping piteously for hours at a time.

But a bird has to learn how to be a bird, and they can’t do that if I try to “rescue” them.

Hopefully I won’t be this anxious when my own kids “leave the nest” (fortunately that won’t happen anytime soon since they’re still toddlers). Hopefully I’ll learn to be chill like a robin mom, giving my kid space to learn and grow, while also reassuring them that I’ll be there to help if they ever really need me.