The winged friends

  Birds are the most beautiful and lovely creatures nesting and resting on trees and shrubs. The chirping sounds and melodious song tunes of birds early in the morning seem like nectar in the ears. Well, there might not be anybody who hates birds. And if we come across special. feathered friends once in a while either on our visit to a sanctuary, zoo, or hill station it is even more exciting and memorable. Whenever we get to hear the song of a hummingbird, a cuckoo, or a parrot chirping away to Glory it is so mesmerizing. I have visited a bird sanctuary in South India that houses some beautiful species of rare birds, which is a magical sight to see. How the Siberian crane travels so many kilometers to avoid the chilling winters and how it navigates back after the winter season winds up is a mystery of mother nature. The journey is itself spectacular..       

  Ishaan's grandfather was reading a book that seemed to be so engrossing that the gentleman was not even aware that Ishaan was calling him to accompany him to the nearby park. Being a Sunday and on top of it vacation time, Ishaan was getting bored what with most of his friends out of the station. Since Ishaan's parents were super busy with their jobs he had to spend his time as better as possible. Of course, he had grandpa for company. His grandfather was very fond of wildlife and he was an excellent photographer too. He had a passion for watching birds and had a habit of noting down all details in a diary. He wanted to get the information that he collected to be published as a book. Ishaan knew about his grandpa's dream. As they proceeded towards the park that was a few yards away from their home, both of them noticed some pleasant chirping sounds coming from the nearby bushes and from a nest that was visible on the branches of the tree.   Needless to say both of them were so curious to find out what was there on the branches. As they were looking up they could see a crane crouched on the topmost branch. Its white body was shining bright in the sunlight. What an amazing awesome sight felt both of them. Because it is rare to find a crane so near. It is not so common to find them in residential areas. Cranes are common sight near ponds and lakes looking for insects and fish for feeding. Their long necks and beaks help them in fishing and getting to eat the fish.    

 As it got very dark both of them returned home with an idea to go on a morning walk as early as possible to get a better glimpse of the crane. They were even more excited as there was a small lake flowing nearby their house and cranes are frequent visitors to that lake. The next morning when the alarm rings at 5.30 am both grandson and grandfather are up and ready much to the surprise of his parents. They walk with big strides and reach the park only to find the tree branches vacant. The crane was not to be seen. As they walked a bit further near the lake they could see a white crane bird looking at something on the ground which looked like a ball of cotton. The crane with a bent neck was gently rolling the white ball. With a little bit closer look not disturb the crane they realized it is the crane's egg that might be ready to hatch. The mother crane was obviously concerned about the well-being of its baby. The eggshell should be taken care of until it hatches completely as per the time that is fixed by nature. Until then the mother sits guard as is the nature of any parent, especially the mother. Ishaan's grandpa was aware of the entire process of the crane dropping an egg, the time it takes to hatch the egg, and so on. As they returned home for the night from the park Ishaan saw his grandpa noting down that day's experience. On asked about the entire process his grandpa said that it takes about 37 days for the chick to hatch from an egg, and it will take a few more days for the chick to start moving and then walking guided and protected by both the parents that are the male and female crane. What a wonderful creation of God and mother nature. As time rolls by the chick learns to fly and becomes independent mimicking the crane's mother and father. Before the hatchling learns to fly both the parents feed it turn by turn. The hatchling learns to eat beside its parents. As the baby grows the parents help it to navigate the environment. Once all this is done and complete the baby crane is ready to fly high in the sky independently. Ishaan learned a few useful lessons from Grandpa's write-up. He understood how even a bird takes care of its hatchling, how it is taught to eat and fly, and how independent birds become early since birth not like human beings who grow up very late in life.