"Sensei, why is— learning bird calls impor—tant for sur—survival?"

"Good question!" Kuwana praised, smiling in a way he hoped didn't come off as condescending. He liked when Mitsuru asked him questions like this, about life and the way things are, because he always had an answer. "Because birds are predictable. No matter what, a mourning dove will coo in the morning, and an owl will hoot at night. Without any phones or watches, birds keep the time, and time is a human's most valuable resource.

If you think about it, a crested ibis can live to be in its 20s, but how does it know in its first year to migrate south before winter comes? How does it know that winters are harsher in the north, or that snowy mountains are unsuitable for laying their eggs? They just have to know, or they'll die. They don't get second chances. That's why all animals are born with their life's purpose: the instinct to survive. That's something even us humans fail at."