I found three parakeets during an afternoon walk, well sheltered from the heat of the afternoon. They were perched above a fruit tree. One of the parakeets was giving away its bird call repeatedly, and I noticed other birds flying towards the tree.
I noticed one of them feeding the fruit and then returned to be perched on the trunk of the adjacent tree. Stayed to watch the look and movements of this parakeet. It looked straight into the camera that I could take several photographs of its alert, elegant and communicative look.
I noticed it even having a short nap (the last photo)!
Three behaviours drew my attention.
The Parakeets called out to other birds having found fruits in the tree.
One who was the first to feed from the fruits had its share and flew away. It was giving away its space to other birds.
It appeared content even to take a nap! It had a good sene of what it needed and having found what it needed was mindful of others.
Some birds are greedy that they would restrain other birds coming to share in the meal. I have noticed it with Crows and Barbets.
Whether to have more or to choose to be content with just enough is a dilemma that I find universal among humans.
I noticed a watchmen take a portion of food from his plate to a container during supper time and eat the rest. I knew that he was the security guard at the main entrance to the college campus. Later in the evening, as I was getting out of the campus, I noticed this watchman handing over the food container to an old person, looking unwell. The next day, when the I met him, I enquired about what he did in sharing his meal with someone else. Then he told me the story of this older person with advanced cancer, who lived alone in a close by lane. He had none to look after him. It is a group of security men who provide him three meals every day. They have been dong it for a few months now. On the days he does not come to collect his portion, one of the security men would reach the food to his home!
The parakeets behaved kindly towards other birds. The security men were alike in their behaviour!
To possess less is an unlikely way choice for most of us. To have just enough is also not a choice that most of us make. To have more is the natural inclination.
The restful sleep of contentment after having had its portion and sharing the rest with other birds, is what I observed in the parakeet. It is a call for myself that I receive from this experience!
M.C.Mathew (text and photo)
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