ARTICLE : SMALL WONDERS

 

 

SMALL WONDERS

LT COL NOEL ELLIS

 

13/IX/2021

 

Very heavy rain warning has been forecast here. Hydrus, Varuna, Zeus, Indra, Poseidon all seem to have united together and showered their blessings in abundance. We are lucky that the sea is close by and Poseidon drinks what Varuna sends.

 

One was lucky this morning. The sky kept growing darker but not a drop came down. One thing good about the earth here is that it does not hold water. One can see puddles filling up but once it stops, in half an hour the water seeps in. All that flows into the drains, goes to the sea.

 

Moment I hit the road, a huge camel coloured insect crossed my path. One was taken aback for a second, when it suddenly almost ran over my feet. Initially, it appeared to be a baby crab as it was the same colour crabs we have around here. The pincers were missing though.

 

It was actually a huge spider. Why was the spider on the road and risking its life?? It must be changing ambush sites, I thought. One has seen lots of cobwebs but had never seen such a spider. Moment it must have heard the vibrations of my feet, it just went flat. As if someone had sucked out the air from its swollen bottom and legs absolutely straight and stretched.

 

A little wait and it sensed the danger had gone and resumed its journey. I thumped my feet just to check its reaction and it froze right in its tracks again. A while later her backside swelled like a blacksmith’s ‘bellow’. Birds were on the prowl but they did not bother to target this eight legged beauty. This event needed to be filmed.

 

There was a clump of grass on the side of the road which was an ideal hiding place. The spider entered and vanished inside it. On my return with the mobile she was untraceable.

 

Reminded me of the survival instinct of the little baby crabs which have now grown up to about two inches in size this season. They come up on the road sometimes. Moment one comes close, they run ‘sideways’ for dear life. Without giving a second thought they leap into the drain about three feet deep. Hope they don’t get hurt while they take this jump for survival.

 

This took me back to the previous night’s walk. Rain Gods were obliging plentifully. Even the fish are fed up. How much can one ‘drink’ after having had “one too many for the road”.

 

The road surface was reflecting light from the street lights like a very shiny surface. All the water which must be stuck in the little undulations, made it appear like a mirror of sorts. One could see the reflection and the shadow of the cat, as it crossed the road.

 

As one paused for a while to soak in this game of reflections. A movement caught my attention. It was another little fella on the road visible within the cat’s reflection. Something was crawling and crawling fast. This was rather unusual. Was it some kind of a nocturnal animal or insect?

 

As I sat down on my haunches to take a closer look, it turned out to be a ‘caterpillar’ of some kind. Again the same question. Why was it on the road at this time of the evening? Generally, they are busy all day munching away leaves. Why was it crossing the road? They had no business here.

 

A few thoughts went past my mind. Probably he was knocked off by a big rain droplet, which made him lose his grip on the leaf he was devouring. Once on the floor he lost his way. Maybe, there was this secret place known only to him, where it would go and become a pupa. Having a girlfriend across the road was ruled out. He was not a ‘chicken’ which keeps crossing the road.

 

One could only pity it, working so hard at this hour of the night and that too under the street light. Then there was survival which is important to all of us. Could this be his main reason to rush across? Had I not been careful this guy would have got squashed to pulp under anyone’s feet or a tyre of a passing vehicle. But nature has its way.

 

Let him be on his own I thought, but then why should he be left to die on the road. A leaf came rolling down which became my tool for its evacuation. The caterpillar was scooped up in it, though he curled up as a defensive instinct. Off he was unloaded on the nearest bush to live happily ever after.

These small wonders keep us entertained. What else will we come across? I wonder!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

JAI HIND 

© NOEL ELLIS