Mithuu - My parrot and his story #lookup

Majority of the times when the chips are down and life seems a burden, you need someone who can make you all happy and cheerful. What better way than to have a pet who gives you some optimism about how to face things ahead and lookup. This is my lookup story as I travel my journey along with Mithuu- my pet parrot who was with me a decade back.

I have been always fascinated with birds, watching them, hearing them tweet every morning. Squirrels, little birds and parrots have been favourite as time just seems to stop whenever I used to observe them. When I was in class 10th, I had started harassing my parents for a pet. I wanted a parrot as one of my relatives had one and I had been regularly going there since I was a child. When they could not deter me from my wish, they ultimately caved in. My request ( my side) was conveyed as a demand ( as my parents saw it) to the same relative whom I still call (Chidiya wale nanaji) owing to the fact that he has been keeping birds all long.

He knew that it was not possible for us to care for the newborn parrot so he took it under his wing to raise him and then hand it over to us when he was big enough to eat on his own. When he was handed over to us, we named him Mithuu. The green parakeet was adorable and mind you that his wings were NEVER cut so we were a bit afraid that he might fly away on the first window of opportunity. We started with his food- whole wheat grains and water. His cage was put in the verandah according to the time of the day. In the afternoon, he was put in a cooler shade to save from the sun and by the night his cage used to be there up at the hanging place I had devised through a strong chain to protect him from cats.

He was full of antics. I myself painted his cage with a still unusued bottle of acrylic paint while he had cowed in a corner unsure of what was going on. He was a chirpy bird who was always happy- full of life. Even before the morning alarms went off , he used to chirp loudly with the birds in the air , dancing all around his cage trying to match their voice. Me and my father used to jokingly say that he is talking to his girlfriends. One day something strange happened. While I was preparing to go to school, I saw him roaming in the verandah. He was out of his cage having lifted the door by his beak and ventured out. My high pitch scream bought my father out who closed the door of the verandah lest a cat should come. I was afraid that he might get hurt if he tried to fly and did not do it correctly. When we were sure that he wont fly away, we left him wandering off there. I guess he was never taught flying since he grew up so he never learned it. Soon he became famous as the “ walking parrot” in the colony as well in the school. Once a classmate of mine came to visit me and saw him walking, since then the word spread like forest fire. 

Even my father used to call out to him when he used to return from office and he would answer with his voice. This bird used to take a bath under the tap, god forbid his fondness for all types of food. He used to relish rice and daal with the same zeal as green chillies or cooked ladyfinger. We got to know about his love for Green chick peas (hara chana) by accident. Once when I finished up shrubs of it and threw it in the garbage bin, he saw it and started screaming on top of his voice, indicating to us that he too wanted it. When I gave him one stem with peas he finished up much quicker than anybody. From then on there was always another 100 gms extra bought of for Mitthuu. When I used to sit down to eat, I used to call out to him and he would appear. At nights during the winters, he used to sleep in my room in a corner in his cage, otherwise he had a warm jacket like enclosure made for his cage when it was not possible. When he used to finish his food, which he always used to take in the cage as his bowls were there, he used to put them one top of the other to indicate “ no more”.

He had his favourite resting spots- The front tire of my cycle, he used to climb on it by the spokes in the wheels or our bajaj scooter. It happened many times that we often forgot to open the gate to his cage so that he could go in. Opening from outside was tough for him as opposed to the inside as I had bent the gate grooves a bit so that cats cant open that. If he wanted to go inside he used to stand there and call us out indicating that open the door. Sometimes when he used to doze off on the wheel and we couldn’t find him in the cage ,we used to call him out, “ Mithuu…kahaan ho? ( Where are you? ) and he used to answer back and walk to his cage. He was like a family member to us all. 

He was a bird that taught me that you cant plan life too much in advance and then try to live it. He taught me to live life, try out new things and be different from the rest so that people fock to you to see you.. He was unique… my Mithuu.

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