I was visiting with a friend who spends her time by the window looking at the birds. When they come to the feeder, she perks up. When none arrive, she wonders where they are. 

Her son installed Alexa to empower her to call any of her children, or to turn on lights, or any number of things. Mostly she does not explore the options. We were chatting about the football game that her son and grandsons certainly watched. I decided to find out the score. 

"Alexa, who won the football game?" 

She rewarded my curiosity with a string of numbers from teams I have never seen, and the two of us laughed. Since my friend enjoys the birds, I elected to ask another question. 

"Alexa, which birds are red?" 

"The cardinal is a red bird." 

"Are there more than cardinals?" I prodded. 

"The Cardinals are a baseball team that has a long history..." she began, but my friend and I were too busy laughing to listen. 

Sometimes I wonder if Alexa could keep my friend company in the hours when she is alone. But it seems that Alexa, whose knowledge is extensive, only speaks to topics of this earth. These hold less interest to my friend. There are other questions that hover in her mind.

"How long will it be until I see my husband again?"

"Why am I still here?"

"Have I earned my place in heaven?"

Soon it was time for me to go, and I hugged her goodbye. As I walked home, one of the answers seemed to float my way, carried in the voices of the birds. Perhaps the reason she is still here is to remind me that concerns like scores, and world events are not the best questions to be asking.