TAKE A PAUSE

TAKE A PAUSE

LT COL NOEL ELLIS

18/V/2022

It has been a lovely experience with the fauna of our colony. Hummingbirds are enjoying our company. They come and go at will, as if our veranda is theirs. We don’t mind it at all. Watching them is a treat to the eye. There are other birds which are also enjoying our hospitality too. Grains we spread for them are being relished & we are loving it.

If one visits a ‘Chakki’ (flour mill) in Jodhpur. They not only give you freshly milled flour but also offer you a variety of grains, which could be mixed and ground as per your liking. These shops also offer readymade ‘bird feed’, which is the sieved portion of grains which they sort before milling. Special food for ‘ants’ is also on offer. People believe in feeding those crawlies to ‘kamao punya’.

In Maharashtra, we saw people feeding ‘Crows’ on “Shraad” in remembrance of their deceased. They were treated to ‘Kurkure’ of all the other things by my colleague. A murder of crows would congregate well before my colleague would return from office at his home. It was party time after that.

On his way back, the ‘panwala’ would keep Kurkure packets ready on his counter. Once while accompanying him, his ‘bahi khata’ read Mr ‘Jada Kawla’ (fat crow in Marathi). I kept quiet as he looked like one and was even darker than a crow. He was massive & weighed over 120 kgs.

Sometimes to see the reaction of crows, he would not feed them on purpose while entering his house. Crows would fly to his veranda at the back and knock on one window. They never attacked or turned violent but kept cawing till they were fed.

This guy loved cats too. ‘Machhiwalis’ used to display their catch near our steel plant. At dusk they would slash rates of fish as clearance sale. In ten bucks he used to get enough to feed those seven or eight of them. Cats would line up, sitting with an equidistant gap facing the road awaiting his arrival. Garfield the alpha male used to be fed last. He would lie patiently but in the opposite direction and wait till his brood had had their fill. Mind you, he got the lion's share.

This morning one saw a similar cat in the colony. All those memories started flowing down. We straight away christened him ‘Garfield’. This guy was on the prowl and was about to pounce on something. It could be a bird, lizard or a chameleon.

One more experiment was done. In the small earthen container, which we have kept for the humming bird to quench its thirst, I added some sugar. It now has become a treat for them. Sunbirds frolic around for a while and return to drink the sweetened water at regular intervals. This concoction has attracted a lot of ants too. At least birds are drinking a locally brewed ‘Cola’, if I may call it so.

With food and drink plenty for the birds, one noticed that they did not eat wheat and maize kernels bought from the Chakki. They lie untouched strewn on the flower bed. One should not be surprised if we find them sprouting, that time would tell.

Heat wave here is touching 50 plus. We had to put a green shade to save our pots. Green leaves are drying out and turning crisp.

Shade for the pots is also shade for the birds. Sparrows and Bulbuls too are enjoying their drink. For them there is a special earthen bowl of water. I wish we could get a ‘Salman’ or a ‘Hrithik’ to advertise ‘my cold drink’ for more birds to get attracted to. It doesn’t have fizz but birds are loving it more than the drinks they advertise for.

Mr ‘Tik-Tok’ our chameleon got disturbed and may have got angry. While fixing the shade, his favourite pot got displaced. In the evening, when I didn’t find him in his usual place it struck me that something was amiss. Luckily, I remembered his pot and replaced it straight away. Hope this evening he poses for us like he usually does. A baby Tik-Tok was also spotted with him. Their family too is flourishing with us. It is happiness.

Life is enjoyable remembering friends. Mr Jada Kawla would be getting hiccups. Birds, animals & reptiles bring so much joy. Now they even oblige us & pose for a photo shoot. One has decided to take a pause to absorb these blessings. They could disappear any day. Hope they won’t. Will they? I wonder!!!!!!!!!

JAI HIND