Jack Crow Knows

Kathy LaFollett
5 min readJan 26, 2019

Excerpt, Chapter 8 (I may actually finish this book soon!)

“I love this tree Jack. Your mother will be so pleased you’ve chosen it.” Edgar looked around at the full healthy needles on the pine tree. It was taller than his last time here, and full of cones. It smelled good.

A voice came from a dark corner of a larger branch growing from the trunk below. “How long do you think you’ll be here bothering me?”

Jack laughed, Todd joined in with an agreeable giggle. “We just now arrived and we’re already a bother to you?” Jack liked a good question that already had an answer.

“You bothered me before you even showed up. That is why I was here first and not busy bothering you where ever you were before you came here!” The voice replied.

Edgar decided he would leave the negotiations to his son. It was a rite of passage, he too had his own voice to deal with oh so long ago. Edgar nestled onto his legs and took a comfortable grip of his branch. No matter how this turned out, it would be entertaining.

“It would be helpful to know who I am bothering. After all how do I know it really bothers you at all if I don’t know who you are?” Jack put on his best adult voice and serious nature type crow speak.

“How do you know I am really bothered at all if…. what are you dribbling on about? That whole statement shows you for the lost soul of a crow you are. I am bothered because I told you I was bothered!” The voice rustled in the needles. “I am so bothered I may just leave this tree”

An offer at last. These things can go on for a fair amount of time, you could never know just how long it would take to get an offer. And the first one to make an offer is usually the one that accepts the counteroffer. You have to hold out for that bit to claim a tree. Edgar grinned under his wing, pretending to nap, but all the while listening in.

Todd elbowed Jack, “It’s the offer! Counter it!” Todd loved these tree negotiations. He would accept anyone’s invitation to join in a tree claiming. The negotiations were hilarious!

Edgar waited. Todd snickered. Jack, had plans. He wanted his negotiations to be the best crow claim negotiations ever made. To crow claim well, a crow does not want to alienate those already in the tree. A great negotiation leads to everyone staying, sharing and caring for a great tree. And a great crow is a great neighbor. He would do his best at this for a good story and a proud father.

“I wouldn’t want you to leave this tree. I find your company pleasant. Maybe there is something I can do that would alleviate the bother for you?” His counter offer floated in the air. Todd waited silently. Edgar knew his son had already solved the negotiation.

“Well, I didn’t say I WOULD leave, I said I MAY leave.” The voice spoke plainly.

“That’s true! I’m glad for it. Maybe we should start with introductions. I am Jack Crow, this is my friend Todd and my father Edgar. I’m pleased to meet you.” The trio of crow waited for an answer.

From between the dark green pine needles and the long drooping branches that held them shown an eye. The eye looked up to Jack, over to Todd and around to Edgar, and returned its gaze to Jack. “Hello to you all. I am Stiltz. And this is Stretch, Ginger, Fred, Harvey, Jane, Tony, Shirley, Gary, Ralph, Shorty, Stubby, and Lenny.”

Todd looked over at Jack with an incredulous shrug. Hey, if there were 12 others of this one, so be it. But he couldn’t see them. Jack looked to his father for reassurance. Negotiating with one individual was literally one thing, but 12 others could get tricky. Edgar could only offer a fatherly shrug of assurance mixed with “you’re on your own son”.

Jack looked back to his eye with a voice. “So, you’ve your flock with you. That’s great! I can’t see you though, not all of you or all of you all. It would help if I could see you, not necessarily all of you although.” The pine needles rustled and parted like a curtain to reveal an Ibis
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“Oh! Nice to see you Stiltz Ibis.” Jack relaxed. Negotiating with Ibis was simply a task of acknowledgement. They spend little time in a tree. But will show up all together if the weather or the other ground creatures make it necessary. And thankfully they don’t nest this far from the salt waters.

“And you too Jack Crow. I remember you, over there. We met in this tree seasons ago. Edgar, right?” Stiltz leaned forward to take a better look.

“That’s right. I had my wife Helen, with me. We came in to claim the tree.” Edgar continued, “This is my son, Jack, we’re back to claim the tree for him.”

“AH! Well that’s grand. Have you visited lady human in the yellow house lately? She’s taken to offering shelter and foods to the ducks now. Me and mine go over all the time for eating.” Stiltz Ibis rustled his feathers, which led a wave of honks and rustling from within the pine tree. More eyes revealed themselves between branches and pine needles.

“We were going to drop in after claiming this tree actually. It’s been a while since I’ve been here.” Edgar hopped to his son’s branch and looked into the eyes of his past. “I’ll enjoy telling Helen we found each other today.”

“Yes. Send her my best hellos. Well, we’re off to the shores and grasses for lunch. I’m sure we’ll see you here again sometime.” Stiltz hopped to an outer branch and took off toward the gulf. And 12 Ibis hidden away appeared from the depths of the tree and followed Stiltz creating a formation as they fell in behind him on the wing.

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