When Reflections Become Enemies
A woodpecker’s rage leads to more than shattered windows.
“Explain to me again how your insurance report says ‘attacked by woodpecker’?”
Donna hesitated to explain. “It’s not as ridiculous as it sounds.”
The claims agent flipped through the photos—deep gouges along the side mirror, a splintered beak-shaped crater in the windshield.
She tried to offer context, absurd as it sounded. “He’s not trying to maliciously destroy anything.”
The claim agent scoffed. “You really expect me to belie—”
A sudden WHAP-WHAP-WHAP echoed through the office. The agent was caught off guard and Donna sighed hearing the familiar sound.
Outside, the woodpecker landed with a clatter. Its red punk-rock crest flared in the sunlight.
They both rose and stepped to the window to see the bird pounding the tinted window of her car with single-minded fury, its beak striking glass like a jackhammer.
"That's him," Donna said quietly.
The agent just stared, watching as the bird paused, tilted its head at its own reflection, then resumed the attack with a furious TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP. The sound cut through the office like a metronome gone mad. Donna flinched slightly but didn’t look away.
They watched silently. All that fury, all that confusion. The bird didn’t want a fight. It just couldn’t recognize itself. Each reflection was a trespasser. Every car, a battlefield.
“We attack things we don’t understand,” Donna murmured. “Get caught in our own confusion. We lash out at shadows, thinking the enemy is out there, when it’s really what we’re carrying inside.”
The agent continued watching the woodpecker and quietly responded, “Yeah… some mirrors are harder to walk away from.”
The woodpecker gave one last defiant peck, then flapped away into the trees.
The agent sighed and stepped back from the window. Donna followed, and they both returned to their seats.
He signed on the paper and slid the claim approval across the desk. Donna gave a small nod, unsure whether to thank him or just sit with the strange relief that someone understood.
“I’m only covering this because… I’ve been there,” he said, a tinge of regret in his voice. “When things crack, we look for something—someone—to blame. It’s easier than facing what we see in the mirror.”
Real headlines that vaguely resemble today’s fiction:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/woodpecker-damages-vehicles-massachusetts-town-rcna202755
https://www.birdsandblooms.com/birding/birding-basics/woodpecker-damages-vehicles/
https://people.com/massachusetts-woodpecker-vandal-destroyed-25-car-mirrors-exclusive-11721462
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