How to Save a Human: Notes from a Purple Martin Colony

We weren’t expecting company. Mercy and I were there for the inventory of life, clipboards in hand, ready to lower the nest boxes and record the secrets within. We had just begun the descent when Jim appeared, a silhouette drifting down the trail toward us.

“I know it’s your week,” he said, his smile sheepish, caught in the act. “I just thought I’d stop …