Crack! The shell broke and out emerged a gross yet adorable lil’ birdie. She looked tired, she looked scared. She glanced around herself with her large, black, beady eyes. There seemed to be nobody around. She let out a faint shout with all the strength she could muster…seconds after which, a large “thing” came zooming in…large yet gentle, it was her mother!
Her mother cooed in her ear, stroking her with her wing; looking at her with wonder-filled eyes all the while. The Sun shone bright on their home and instinctively she covered her child’s eye from the strong rays…there was quite some time until her kid could see the big world yet. Tired that she was; lil’ birdie soon slipped into sweet sleep in her mother’s warmth. Loud chirps that sounded similar to hers woke her up from the depths of sleep she had slipped into. Oh, what was cacophony amidst all the calm there was? Lil’ birdie opened her eyes unwillingly and there they were…her sister and two brothers! And they were scared, each one probably more intimidated on hearing the other scream. It took their mother a lot of patience in coaxing them; and there was silence yet again! Our lil’ birdie now had her first favored thing – calmness; and not very long after, the setting Sun with all the hues splattered over joined the list too!
A few hours down the line, the siblings got along very well with each other; all day long, each day they played with each other, with regular “meals” that their mother fed them. Our lil’ birdie grew curious day by day – she wanted to see what was beyond the huge wall that stretched all around them. She tried to take a jump and take a peek - - just, the jump wasn’t big enough. Yet another jump and she almost reached the tip of the wall! Heart thumping excitedly, she jumped again, giving it all she could. A fleeting glance though it was, it was just breath-taking!! The blue sky splattered with hues of the orange setting Sun; and the blooming trees only seemed to add to the colors! Tired from all the jumping, she soon slept.
Meanwhile her mother, watching all of this from a distance smiled to herself…she had sensed it from the very beginning that her first lil’ birdie was different, that she would fly heights! At dawn the following morning, the mother had a great idea; she just couldn’t wait until lil’ birdie woke up. Everything was planned. Once all her kids had had their fill, a time span that seemed like ages, the mother gently pushed her lil’ birdie towards the end of their home. Once she faced the wall, lil’ birdie gasped! There was a raised step at the wall…she could easily walk outside their home! She looked back at her mother inquisitively; her mother gave her a kind smile which made her heart skip a beat yet again. She looked back, all her siblings were en route their siesta. Soon enough, our lil’ birdie was out of the nest, out in the open! The first glance made her dizzy…she just shook her head, refusing to give up. Her mother, pleased with the fiery determination she saw on her child’s face, took off from the branch, giving her an encouraging, assuring glance at the same time. Lil’ birdie raised a leg…immediately withdrew her leg. She heard an encouraging coo from her mother. This time, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath and jumped off the branch. She could feel the wind gushing in her ears. She flapped her wings frantically and hard; eyes shut tight. Gradually, the sound of the wind reduced and it was now sweet symphony! She opened her eyes…and lo and behold! She was in mid air; her mother beside her, smiling all the way. The mother left her lil’ birdie to her own solitary pleasure as she soared over the trees, trying to reach the clouds…until her tired self gave in to the speeds of the wind, until the next time!
PS : inspired from “Jonathan Livingston Seagull”
dedicated to Dominic Sir
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
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