Peacock at the window

I have a day job as an editor, and I’m lucky enough to work in the middle of a nature reserve. We get all kinds of wildlife around the office, and sometimes in it. A couple of years ago we had a baby grass snake under one of the desks. On sunny days, lizards bask beside the footpaths. On a lunchtime walk, I once saw an adult grass snake swim across a pond, grab a frog and scoff it whole.

This week, a peacock came to the window. It strutted on the sill for a bit, then sat down and fell asleep. Peacocks are way too beautiful, except for their eyelids, which are scaly and weird and close from the bottom up. The expression they pull when they fall asleep reminds me of the Samiad from Five Children and It.