A Parrot in the Woods
Once upon a time, a pretty long time ago, around l977, (Imagine! I was just 40! ) I spent a week in Woodland at our family summer cabin totally alone (and without a car).
Wilderness! I wanted to experience BEING alone, I had (and have) never lived alone.
It was probably June--cool enough to have a small fire in fireplace at night, warm enough in the day to be outside all day.
Which is what I did, roaming the area, walking up the creek, climbing hillsides, following deserted trails, even animal (deer) trails,
with never a worry about getting lost: one walked downhill, down stream, and eventually get to something known.
I sat in sunshine outside and watched butterflies: it was a great week for them, I saw many species. They seemed to be attracted to the yellow plastic chair I sat in.
I saw hummingbirds, one doing his nuptial dance, spectacular swoops and dives.
I ate and slept whenever I wanted to. I wrote, I drew, I made photographs, I walked, I watched, I observed. I was quiet. I talked to a few friends on the phone, not much.
I enjoyed my time. I experienced myself.
One day when I was walking about looking for dry wood for a fire, I heard a loud whoosh, sounding like the wings of a large bird. I looked up,
and there was a magnificent parrot--sitting on a branch close to me. It was red, green, blue, yellow, and very beautiful. It looked as big as a hawk or vulture. It looked at me.
I held out my arm, purely instinctively, and it flew down onto my arm! What was a tropical bird doing in the deep forest of the Catskill Mountains?
And what was it doing sitting on my arm? Clearly it was tame, it did not fly away, and I could walk with it on my arm, feeling like a queen with a talking bird.
It did not talk. At least, it did not talk to me. I walked with it a bit, liking the feeling of the weight of the big bird as it adjusted its balance.
It would fly up into the tree branches, but return to my arm when I held it out. Soon I had walked to my neighbor's house, and they came out to marvel at the bird.
It seems they had heard about a resident further down the road who kept such a bird and had lost it. So they called and arranged for it to be picked up.
It stayed around the neighbor's house for a few days, proved thoroughly tame (they said it ate off their plates at mealtime!) and eventually was reunited with its owners.
I was not at all reluctant to let it go; I wanted to continue my Experience. And I did.
Jj 12/21/12
