A bird family

After a couple of lengthy nights I was able to complete this blog. I am surprised by the responses I got for my first blog. Thanks for all who made a lot of smiles in my face. Here comes my story.

The story is about a bird family. Family, the word brings me various memories. Bcoz I have a huge and colorful family. Fighting for TV remote, cheating your younger brothers, going for a vacation, the playtimes, the night long chats, short laughs, mother’s love, father’s treat, Uncle’s pocket money, Moonlight dinner (Mother’s special handmade pidisorru). I like to remember every bit of the time I spent with my large family. We had a home, my father built with extra care.

I remember my family because my story also has a similar family.
The family consists of a father bird, mother bird and its unborn baby.

It was around 1 year ago. Usually when I had nothing to do, I sit in my room and do something in my pc. I usually see this bird, so tiny, lovable and cute. It will wander the windows of my room making noises. Most of the time that week, I saw the bird with a strip of dried grass in its beak.

I lived in Pallavakkam that time. I saw some birds and some parrots around my apartment. Since it was not well developed area, I think some birds are left out.For some days, I often saw the bird in my room’s window. I was curios. Some days I also saw another bird along with it. It reminded me of love birds. Sometimes I also saw them inside my room. Days passed by. One day when I turned on my fan, I saw the birds coming from my room’s top shelf. We used it to dump unused things there. I climbed and probed, there I saw a nest and some eggs.

I was very happy. I showed it to my friends. But they did not share my kind of enthusiasm. I thought I should be mad to be so happy for those birds- Just birds. But I got this feeling- Like they were similar to my family. They tirelessly built their home. They have started a new life and a new family. Father bird goes picks what’s needed for the family and mother taking care of their precious children. I was eager as days passed. The birds made some little mess when we left for office. Some roommates suggested closing the window before leaving to office. But I was very unhappy about that. I usually make sure the window is open so that the bird gets access to home. It was like someone pushes out of your home and you are homeless. Some time the window was closed by someone in house. At those times I could see the birds waiting outside and making some noise.

One night when I and my roommates started sleeping in the room, we heard some noise. When we got up and saw, we saw the bird was hit by the fan when it tried to get out of the room. Then I realized that the window was closed while the bird was inside. I felt like I did a great crime- Killing a life. The bird was dead. I could not see the other bird there.

After some sad regrets, there was an idea of dumping the dead bird. But I felt like I should do something more. I kept the dead bird near its nest. I thought at least the other bird needs to see its beloved one. At least it should know that it can’t see its beloved ones again. Next morning I didn’t know whether the other bird came to its nest. I took the little dead bird to the top floor.

The bird which was vibrant, full of action, full of life lied next to me without life. It stirred up many thoughts. Where did the bird go? What will happen to its family? Why it happened? I was interrupted by the noises of the other bird probably it should be the father bird. I can feel in its pain in its noise. The pain of missing someone you love so much. The pain you feel when someone so close to you just vanishes from a moment of time.

For next few hours and next few days I heard the noises of the bird. I think it sensed some danger in the room. It tried to shift the eggs to a new place. But the eggs fell and when I came to the room I could see the dried remains of the little grown egg. I could barely see the body of a new bird forming. It should have been a bird full of life - Flying and singing. I felt the whole generation of the family was dead. After that day, I could not see any birds there. Nor I hear any noises. I wonder what happened to that lonely bird. How it suffers.

I am confused why it happened. Why a family of a bird had to die in this fateful environment. What we have built is not an ecosystem where every being coexists and complete the circle of life. I wonder whether we have gone too far, whether we have created a graveyard in name of cities and buildings.

If any creatures apart from man exist in our environment, it’s just the rare chance of life which hangs in a thin thread. I wonder whether we will see birds only in zoos and restaurants in future. When will our need for comfort and money end? I think it will end with the end of our own survival.

Only When the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned
and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.
-- Cree Indian Proverb