Skip to main content

ARTICLE : A LUCKY DAY

    A LUCKY DAY

LT COL NOEL ELLIS

09/X/2021

A new day, fresh as fresh could be started with a ‘Dil Khush’ moment as I stepped out of our door. A new type of hibiscus flower was in full bloom. Though this is one of the oldest varieties, it is rare to find. It has a small story and a background.

Having decided to collect as many new varieties and colours of this favourite flower of mine, this type was what I had my eyes on. Having visited umpteen nurseries, one could not find a sapling of this one. One fine day as I strolled along the colony, one had a ‘Chirag Tale Andhera’ moment. We had been staying in the near vicinity where this bush had almost become a small tree with so many flowers blooming at one go. How did I miss it? Better late than never.

Two years back, I was in my ‘greenhouse’ working on ‘cuttings’ when an idea struck me to have this one in our collection. Before anyone could object on taking a branch, the cutting was on its way. With a prayer on my lips and lots of root hormone on the cuttings bottom, in it went into a pot. As luck would have it, many cuttings died. Which colour one had survived was difficult to differentiate.

I always kept an eye on the original bush. One fine day the bush was gone. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The new occupants of the house got it uprooted. By the time one could get hold of the horticulturist and ask him why he had done it, it was too late. They had shoved it into the compost pit along all the green waste. My heart sank. One felt so bad as the only specimen had perished. How stupid people could be?

I told those guys to get it from wherever, as I had seen an odd bush growing along the roadside towards Alibaug. These guys ignored my request. Later I also forgot about it. Today, all my anger, which probably had got stored in one corner of my mind, just vanished and happiness took over.

Having adored it and clicked some pictures, I ventured on my morning walk. The first thing one spotted on the corner hibiscus was a ‘mold’. My mind started working as to how to get rid of it. If it caught hold of the plant, it could kill it. But then it was my friend Tik-Tok, in full camouflage, probably out on shikar. I heard they can catch sunbirds too. I left him to enjoy his morning.

Talking about sunbirds, these darlings are crazy for nectar. They know each flower in the entire neighbourhood. They dance, fly, hover and go around having their meals from dawn to dusk. I have found them in pairs but to capture both together is rare. Either you are too far or they are too fast.

It was a rare opportunity today to capture one with a nectar drop at the tip of its beak. Reminded me of my childhood when mom would pin a handkerchief on my shirt with a safety pin, in case one had to wipe his face after having tiffin in the recess. Most of us would have a morsel or two stuck around our lips or chin. I wanted to ask the sunbird, where was her handkerchief? It showed me its tongue and flew away to the next flower.

As I bade her goodbye, one reached the spot where one had spotted the two tiny bird chicks last evening. Lo and behold, their Mom and Dad were there. I couldn’t spot the tiny tots but these guys posed for me. Though at a distance, one still managed to capture them. Hope the little ones are doing good as these guys jumped from the mango tree to the banana tree.

Bananas are flowering and one has spotted ants and bees on them. They become a meal for these birdies I believe. At the far end of our lane is a vacant house where one of the banana plant laden with fruit is sleeping on the ground, resting its bunch very close to the steps. One had tried straightening one in our back yard and it snapped from near the base. So instead of doing the same, I left it to sleep and still bear fruit. The tip has curved up and is pointing skywards again.

My wife called out “breakfast is laid on the table”. One was hungry in the company of these lovely darlings. A chance encounter and a fleeting moment when they pose for you is what I call luck. Today was a super lucky day for me. What will tomorrow hold? I wonder!!!!!!!!!

🇮🇳JAI HIND🇮🇳
© NOEL ELLIS














Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

FINGER ON YOUR LIPS

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   29/IV/2025   What has happened to Pakistan? While India is doing Fauji Exercises, Pakistan has mobilised for what! I agree that the people of India want revenge. But, from whom? Our PM has only said that “we will not leave the terrorists and their supporters till the end of the Earth”. He has never said he will sort out Pakistan, or has he?   It has been hilarious watching discussions on Paki social media channels. They seem to have already given up. Our RM meets the PM and Pakistan starts shitting bricks. They talk about jazba and gazwa, and start telling us about their nuclear arsenal. 160 I suppose. By the way we will send across one equivalent to your 160 if need be.   There is a saying, ‘Chor ki Dari main tinka” literal meaning is, a straw in a thief’s beard. However, the deep meaning is that a guilty person reveals his guilt through his behaviour, even unintentionally. Clearly, “a guilty conscious needs no accuser”...
18 comments
Read more

A PERFECT GARDENER

    Most of us are parents and grandparents now. All of us have brought up our children and now are looking after Gen Z. We gave our children and their children the best of best.   With that as an opening remark, let me shift focus to gardening. I am no expert on parenting or gardening. We went with the tide of highs and lows. The churns and turmoil. Even if we consider ourselves as perfect parents, can we be perfect gardeners?   The answer in both cases would be a big NO. When you look back, there is something more which could have been done. Things could have been done differently. There is no perfect template which can fit all.   One saw the kid take baby steps, then their growth stage and then they matured and ready to bear their own children. What is in store in the future? No one knows.   Having said that, let me return to the topic of Gardening. This would interest gardening enthusiasts. Are you a perfect gardener?   My p...
4 comments
Read more

TAKE A PAUSE

  One thing I have realized that spending time with nature brings so much of mental peace. A small bird can just cheer you up. Her tweet can lift your mood. The sheer joy one derives from watching then come and play in your garden, feed, and bathe is just elevating. All those who do it know what I say and a request to those who haven’t must try it.   Morning time is the most hectic for the birds. They all know that their feed will be there. Their tweets and chirps are indicators of the happiness they enjoy. I am sure in between their tweets they chirp to thank us too.   Evenings are another kind of high. These days their feeders go empty by evening. The water bowls too are nearly at bottom levels, not because of their thirst but now they bathe in the bowl more often. The water sprinkled while they shake their bodies flies off emptying the bowl.   In the evening, when I go to the rooftop there is a different kind of hustle. A few sparrows, a pair of dove...
15 comments
Read more

A BREAK FROM BLOGGING

    Christmas week is a busy week and spills over to the New Year. Friends and family get together, rejoice, make merry and strengthen bonds. It is cold and wintry, the reason to indulge in relishing plum and rum cakes and pakwans, dry fruits and puddings and be at peace.   However, too much rest to my ‘finger tips’ was catching with me both with the laptop keys and the ‘click button’ of the camera. Sometimes, it is good to take a break or if one can call it a ‘fast’ of a different sort. It is a good time to sit down, chill, run down and reflect on things which are now memories in the year coming to an end. How time flies!   We had a dinner planned for my chaddi-buddies and their families last evening. We were looking forward to having fun and lots of laughter. However, in all this milieu, some little things had to be done like feeding the fish on the roof, lest I miss out.   As I opened the roof door, my eyes lit up when I saw a white breasted k...
8 comments
Read more

TALE OF A CERTIFICATE

It was way back in 1979 that I became a ‘matriculate’ with a ‘first division’. One required 60% marks for it and I got 60.14%, one mark over the threshold. This I came to realize only yesterday when I had to produce that certificate after almost 46 years.   Those days, first division meant you were the cream. No one talked about percentages or marks. All that mattered was I, II or III Div.   The first time I realised that how important this certificate was when as a young Captain in the Indian Army with three years service, I got a notice from the Army Headquarters to “show cause” why my services should not be terminated as they did not find my matric certificate attached with the mandatory documents required to be submitted to UPSC.   Earth moved under my feet. I was from a Sainik School where all documentation was sent by the school administration. How could they have missed out? Why me, was the question?   Panic and fear struck together as I had ...
6 comments
Read more

MYSTERY OF THE MISSING FISH

  Stray cats are on the prowl in our lane. Residents feed them a variety of food. From Roti to bread and milk is their diet. The way they are bloating is an indicator of their health.   They have been also feeding on the roti we spread for the birds. They eat roti only in case of an emergency. It is birds the cats are after. We haven’t seen them catching one but knowing cat behaviour, they would not miss a chance.   What I do not appreciate is that they jump into the grain bowl. It is a shallow earthen pot hung with wires on a protrusion of a dried branch. Even if there are ten birds feeding on the feeder, it doesn’t shake. Imagine, when a big chubby cat jumps onto it. They have dropped that pot several times and broken it.   We do not mind cats basking on our veranda chairs, but how does one tell the cats not to leave the birds alone. Like the birds are looking for a meal, so are the cats. Nothing like a juicy sparrow or a bulbul or a fat dove.   These cats wer...
6 comments
Read more

ARMY CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR

ARMY CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR   LT COL NOEL ELLIS   16/I/2026   I was watching the excerpts of the ‘Army Day Parade’ held in Jaipur. The show put up by the Army was exemplary. It reminded me of the Chinese Military parade, ours was far better. I wish I could have witnessed it in person.   What impressed me was the showcasing of the ‘Bhairav troops’ in their ‘combat regalia’. Especially the Sikh troops. Camo painted faces, Khaki pagris and the call of Bole-so-Nihal could shake up the enemy in his grave.   What caught my attention was their boots. Keeping their tasks and deployment in mind in various sectors, those boots would be wind proof, water proof, light weight, comfortable, flexible, durable with enhanced grip and ankle support.   The contingent was not in ‘Tez chal’ but ‘daur ke kadam taal mode’. Which implies, they do not walk but are always on the run to annihilate the enemy. Their boots had to support their operational requirem...
4 comments
Read more

CHILLED BEER

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   23/V/2025   How do you like to have your drink? Some like it shaken and not stirred, some ‘on the rocks’, some like it ‘neat’, some hide it in coke, some straight for the bottle, and some don’t mind ‘Tharra’. I will not talk about ‘Hooching’. “Alcoholics’ can drink all the above.   But what about my birdie friends? Birds can drink water from anywhere. It could be from a river, a pond, a nala, even a drain. Some get used to a homely environment, love to have it from their bar aka an earthen bowl. It is like having a cold drink in this heat.   For birds their ‘bar’ is like the ritual of going to fetch water at the village well where they congregate. They gossip, tease, fight, nudge and even shoo each other away. Two to three sips and it is all done. No one wastes it, no one gets drunk and no one minds drinking straight from the same bottle.   It was like the younger days when we shared one beer bottle amongst frie...
2 comments
Read more

A WAKE UP CALL

  There were two incidents that shook Pakistan last week. One was the attack by the Baluchi people; I am on purpose not calling them militants or terrorists which the Pak army spokesperson has declared them. The second was the bomb blast in a mosque in Islamabad, their capital, under the very nose of all kinds of security agencies.   The Paki Army claims that more than 200 Baluchis, 25 Armed forces personnel and about 36 civilians were killed in the first incident spreading across the length and breadth of the district of Baluchistan at 14 locations ( figures would be much higher). 60 killed and 176 seriously wounded in the bomb blast. This means more than five to six hundred people were wiped off the face of the earth.   Massacre, butchering, killing, murdering, extermination, slaughtering, slaying, like terms can be used for this mass scale elimination of one's own people to heaven or hell depending on which side of the fence you were. Innocent souls got caugh...
8 comments
Read more

IF THERE IS A WAR…...

    LT COL NOEL ELLIS   28/IV/2025   I remember the 1971 war as a small child. We were in Kapurthala Punjab, very close to the Pakistan border. It was an evening in December, I do not remember the exact date. While returning from a friends house, the declaration of war was done as I skipped along the ‘Thandi Sarak’ of Kapurthala.   The gist was that a vehicle with loud speakers was telling people to head home as an "emergency" had been declared and war had started. I ran as fast as I could, shivering with fear and my heart beating unusually fast. Though I was a lap baby when the 1965 war had taken place, it appeared serious business now.   Overnight, Dad and other Uncles started digging trenches infront of our homes. Carbon paper was no dearth in a teachers house, so mom got into an overdrive to stick them to the glass windows. Though the glass had been painted during the 1965 war, some broken panes had been replaced. Mom told ...
6 comments
Read more