Dear George,
Birds showing their grief - or even better joy - at a saint's death
is a topos. In 'my' vita of Ivetta of Huy for example it is said that
when she died in midwinter (January), at the hour she drew her last
breath, the snowstorm also held its breath for a moment, and birds
sang a summer song. Paradise regained, so to say.
See Vita Juettae, Acta Sanctorum, 13 January (3d ed. Brussels, 1863)
2, 145-169.
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