Once upon a time, a bird
Flew into a house unobserved.
Every day from night till morn
It pecked on and on and on
Humans in the house were astounded
To have this little fluff, they had it bounded
Assuming it was a pet that was lost
They decided to be a gracious host.
Seeds of grass, rice, and breadcrumbs
Milk tea, meat, or green leafy shrubs
The bird was fed the best food
Had the humans cater to his every mood.
But most of all he loved to eat
Something that made humans chase him on their feet
Was rubber bands that looked like worms
Only to throw up or pass it off as he could not churn
Oh! What a joy the bird was
Always curious about the human jobs
Never left the humans’ side
If left alone, he seeks attention, he cries.
Arms, fingers, shoulders, or head
Bird clawed on, would even hang by a thread
Every day he woke up to a mission
He knew all the humans’ work required his supervision
One fine day, he found a flock
Just like him but were not boxed
They were one and two and four
He felt something in his heart he never felt before
Even though he loved the humans dearly
He did not resemble them at all nearly
He felt a voice building up
For the first time he sang, the silence, disrupt.
Humans heard the bird sing for the first time
Dumbstruck they sat for a scene so sublime
Should they free the bird to somewhere he belonged?
Or keep the bird with the fear of it being forlorn
But the bird was happy to have found
His voice, his song unbound.
And so began a friendly tale
Of a bird caged and four untamed.
They traded stories of their day
Of hunting, of flying, and of nests that sway
Bird found that world to be scary
To live the life of prey was wary
Could it be fun?
To have grasses to run?
Or build nests on trees?
Or fly high to feel the breeze?
Days became months as the bird grew
With the humans and the flock that flew
Little did they know what was to come
A tragedy that would leave everyone stunned
For one of the windows was left open wide
The bird, curious decided to take a flight
By the time human realized and screamed
The bird was perched upon the nearest tree
‘Pakhi!’, the human tried to entice him
With rice scattered in the window, tried to bribe him
The foolish bird was about to fly back
But could not spot the house, he could not track back.
With a beady teary eye
He flew away without a goodbye
Suddenly with a jolt the bird awoke
Looked around for the reality to unfold
For he was on a nest that swayed
And the humans were there too, not far away
‘It was just a bad nightmare’,
His cooing birdling made him aware
Finally, he had a flock of his own
And lived nearby the humans, his original home
Oh! What harmony, oh what joy
To have the best of both worlds, to have that choice.
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