Norbert Makes Friends

I like to make new friends…sometimes.

I’m shy.  But if you are patient and nice, we can probably become friends.  Do you like it when strangers get too close to you?  Me neither.  So do not try to get too close, too soon. 

And If people move too fast, or get too excited, they scare me.  I’m small, and I don’t understand what is happening.  So I will try to escape. Or seek refuge by cuddling up close to a flock member. Or, if I’m on the run, I will call out for help from a flock member. 

This is why babies and toddlers are not my favorite humans.

Talk to me

I like to listen to you talk. Tell me a story. Tell me your secrets. I am really good at keeping secrets. I’ll never tell.

Sing to me

Or sing me a song.  I like the rubber ducky song.  And heavy metal. And Michael Jackson. And a lot of popular music, like Taylor Swift. Really, I like anything with a good beat. You choose the music. I’ll bob my head while you sing.  But keep the beat!  If you lose the rhythm, I will let you know by making a grumpy squawk. 

Let’s count together

I also like to count.  Counting to 4 is my favorite, but we can count higher if you want.  Before you start, tell that me we are going to count. I’ll try to follow along by bobbing my head.  Once I am comfortable around you, you might hear me mutter a number or two (I really like “four”), but I’m pretty shy, so maybe not. 

Let’s have snacks together. 

I like to make friends over snacks. Everything is better with snacks. Even if I’m not hungry, we can put some snacks in my dish for later. Do you ever save your snacks for later? Sometimes I forget they are there, and then it is very exciting to discover them! If you hear me make a happy chirp, that might be the happy sound of snack discovery.

Do you share snacks? What do you like to do with your friends?

Love,

Norbert.