When we first encountered the little goldfinch, she (?) was on her back on the floor of the screen porch, not moving. As usual on a really cold morning, Dave had taken a kettle of hot water out to thaw the birdbaths, and nearly stepped on the tiny bundle of feathers.

He called to me to bring the tissue-lined shoe box we keep for just such emergencies.

The best way to help an injured bird is to do nothing but put it in a dark, warm place for about a half hour. Almost invariably, if it is not seriously hurt, a bird will become alert, preen its feathers, and be on its way.

This one, however, had several badly broken primary feathers and simply could not fly. We watched closely as, lying on her back, she held her damaged wing with both tiny feet, and drew it through her beak, feather by feather, to zip the edges