The little bird wasn’t in the world yet. Outside, it was pouring. It had been raining all afternoon, but by evening, the light drizzle turned into a full-blown downpour. The gray sky opened wide, and thunder, lightning, and huge raindrops spilled down onto the earth. They beat against the windows and drummed on the metal windowsill so loudly that Eliáš couldn’t even hear the fairytale playing on the tape recorder. He turned it off and went to look at the egg. It was lying among the socks, still glowing a little, and a crack ran all the way down its length: from the tip to the round belly. Eliáš thought for a moment. If the egg cracked open during the night and the little bird came out, it would probably be nervous with all those socks around. It could easily get lost in them and even suffocate! “Eliáš, dinner!” his mom called from the kitchen. “What do little birds need?” Eliáš asked as he sat down across from his dad and cut open the first dumpling. A plum rolled out of it. “To grow up,” his dad answered briefly. “They mostly need a soft nest with high edges, so they don’t fall out,” his mom said. “And then?” “They also need to be fed regularly.” “What kind?” Eliáš asked, spooning some cottage cheese with sugar onto the plum and popping it in his mouth. “Flies, worms, bugs, little caterpillars,” his mom listed. Eliáš spat the plum back onto his plate, cut it open, and started to examine it closely. “What are you doing?” his dad frowned. “I’m looking for worms,” Eliáš explained. But there were none in the plum. Disappointed, he shoved it back into his mouth. “And what about seeds?” “Baby birds are born in the spring, and no seeds have ripened yet,” his mom said. “But if people gave them some, they’d eat it, right?” “You eat it. Don’t let it get cold,” his mom encouraged Eliáš, pushing the plate closer to him. “Why would people give them seeds? How would they do that? Little birds are fed by their bird parents.” Eliáš wasn’t too happy with his mom’s answer. He cut open the second dumpling and watched the steam rise. He wondered if the yellow egg would also steam when it cracked open. “And what if the parents aren’t around? What happens to the baby birds then?” he asked worriedly. “Then they don’t become big birds,” his dad concluded the discussion. He stood up, kissed his mom for the nice dinner, and went to watch the news. The conversation didn’t cheer Eliáš up. He started to worry. It was clear that he wasn’t at all prepared for the birth of the little bird. He decided to wait until his parents went to bed and then make a nest.