'MACAW'CRY(DAY 4, POST 2)

Juna darted her eyes around, following the strokes and the flow of the pencil across the book.

She was blue-gold macaw who flew about the house freely, though at night, she was safely put back in her cage which hung in the living room.

Juna loved her snug spot with some sunflower seeds and a bowl of fresh water every day. She had picked up the language of her household, the Greenwoods. Her favourite phrase was, “ Good Morning, how may I help you?” after listening in on phone conversations.

Much to everyone’s vexation, Juna started imitating dialogues from the movies and television and there wasn't a moment’s respite with her constant chattering.

At the moment, she was perched, claws digging softly into Peggy's shoulder. Looking over her homework, Juna started mimicking Mrs. Greenwood's nagging tone asking her to speed up and to come down to dinner.

Frustrated with a complex math problem and with Juna’s non stop monologue, Peggy blurted out, “If you don't get out right now, I will lock you in the basement forever”. Juna only blinked her eyes as if memorizing each modulation and tone. Peggy regretted instantly but the damage was done.

Juna flew around the room commanding to no one in particular, “Get out…right now!” in a tone so fierce that left Peggy stunned.

****

A few days into the incident, Peggy had study holidays before a major exam and was quite engrossed in her studies, with her parents at work and the house help out on running errands. A few minutes passed and everything was deathly quiet. Juna was snoozing in her cage on the humid afternoon.

Peggy heaved a sigh of relief for the rare moment of peace and quiet. Suddenly, her ears perked up at an unusual sound. She could hear low whispers from outside the first floor window. When she parted the curtains slightly, she panicked on seeing two shady looking men with tools trying to break open the back door.

A chill running down her spine, Peggy raced down as noiselessly as she could to dash out of the front door, but she was too late. One of the men was already in the kitchen with a large rucksack.

Cold sweat ran down Peggy’s face as she quickly slipped into a dark corner under the stairs. She was trapped. They would find her soon and then…

And then, a fierce female voice rang out in an annoyed tone, “How can I help you? If you don't get out right now, I'll lock you in the basement for the rest of your life….Out! Out!” Juna had imitated Mrs. Greenwood and the click of a gun barrel.

The thieves upon realizing that their game was up, scurried out and ran for their lives. Juna, the mimic artist had saved the house from getting robbed and also Peggy from coming to any harm.

(478 words)

©️ Sangeetha Kamath

Pic Courtesy:Image by Brigitte Werner from Pixabay

Comments

GROWN, FLOWN AND HOME ALONE!

GROWN, FLOWN AND HOME ALONE! The scent of sweet spring is here! Buds and blooms add dashes of color as the grayscale backdrop bids farewell. While the hush of icy twilights were a sweet lullaby and hazy halos of the winter moon sparkled away, our tender snuggles under the downy, weighted quilts were cozy and warm spaces. Dreams floated in and out—whispering their nostalgia and wistfulness. They hummed a timeless tune of a sacred and cherished bonding of a mother and her cub. The sunlight shone a pale peach behind my closed eyelids before they fluttered open to a bright eve of a spring dawn. The rush of warm breeze rustling the pendulous Silver Anne pothos, heady fragrances wafting from rosemary sprigs and the calming lavender stalks roused the lethargic bear in me from my hibernation. A well deserved wintering later, life is once again a delectable stew bubbling away. Of a different flavor this time. **** My den these days is a no sound zone. All day. Un...

A FISTFUL OF FANTASY(DAY 4, POST 1)

Flights of fancy is loaded in poetry in the verses, stanzas and in the songs When we'd like to think— to the stars the moon belongs A fireball of tangerine we call the sun Sprinkle of diamond dust are these stars dipping in the horizon The shadows long and deep Look like monsters on the floor about to crawl and creep Fireflies are glittering crowns of angels from the realm celestial Butterflies and dragonflies on gossamer wings faeries in disguise mystical The ocean depths hide a jewel studded place for mermaids and dolphins The coral reefs, their garden in the shimmering aquamarine Sonnets and Haikus are laden with imagination Abstract thoughts are written in free verse with rhyme and reason Moonlight and music are like magic spells Fantasy and fancy run riot when I seek a tiny fairy hidden in buttercups or the opulent bluebells Raindrops become rhythmic and the sunshine, therapeutic Colors and hues of the sunset look mesmerizing, they're oceans in the sky; hypnotic....

SECOND LIFE SECOND BIRTHDAY

I finally muster the energy, the grit and the emotional embrace to write about it. When life socked the daylights out of me in ways that I never imagined, I looked on the upside of it as a divine intervention and a another miracle to add to my list in this year 2024 which went down the memory highway full throttle ahead. July 7, Dear Diary is a day which left a distinct mark. A day when my father had a coronary follow up and I not only went along, but also had a check up done for myself. This was a couple of days after my visit to Sai Mandir where Sai Baba guided me to go for a cardiogram. A strong inner voice, authoritative yet kind, a heightened intuition, call it what I may, rang in a manner that couldn't be ignored. That said and done, I had a consultation with my father's doc who did my ECG and ECHO. Minutes flew by in deafening silence when he finally finished the tests and to my horror bluntly revealed that I have an ASD. A 38mm hole in my heart. I was advised to go f...

CHERRY AND GOLD

CHERRY AND GOLD A swan shaped CLOUD swam in the dawning sky Over the moors and VALES, drenched in a silver light A CROWD of stars sizzled away Soon a GOLDEN streaked dawn would turn into a splash of tangerine sorbet Among the hedges and the TREES Butterflies were FLUTTERING as did the honeybees AS the July fragrance filled the air The sky was a MILKY sea with birds flying everywhere The sun peeked from behind a LINE of pine Shimmering on the BAY and washing the horizon with a light hyaline I gaze at this wonder–it's breathtaking The flowers DANCE as their buds and petals are unfurling. ©️ Sangeetha Kamath Pic Courtesy: Pixabay

HOME AND HIBERNATION

And out of nowhere came this madness to wreck mayhem in my already topsy turvy world! Tickets back to Singapore were initially booked on the Chennai transit (why of all the cities?) Because of the shortest layover I could muster, given my still delicate health conditions and which was never even an intentional choice in all my 23 years of travel to and from Singapore. This had to be it even though I was on unfamiliar grounds. But Luck seemed to have a mind of it's own and turned its back on me when Fenjal decided to crash bang in the middle of orderly events, a day before my intended day of travel. When destiny's favorite child was shielded by Baba and his blessings, even Luck had to bow down and retreat in haste. **** Roused from my siesta with a sense of a peculiar dimness and chill , a far cry from the usually sunny and blinding brightness of humid Mangalore, I couldn't help but have that niggling feeling at the back of my mind. Checking on the flight updates for IXE-M...

Sangeetha Kamath

Search This Blog