TIME TO SAY GOODBYE

Zoey was excited. The talk in the crèches was about the journey they would soon be going on. Sakari, their trainer told them, “My little flamingo chicks, it’s time to teach you some ground rules. Ready?”

A sharp squeaking went up, until Sakari put his wings up and flapped them into silence.

“By now I am sure all of you have figured out how to fly.”

Squeak squeak squeak, came the reply, getting louder with every squeak.

“Okay, okay I got the point. So when we fly long distances, we need to follow some rules. All of us cannot fly in a straight line. Why?”

“Because we would be bumping into each other,” said one chick. The others giggled.

Sakari rolled his eyes and said, “We fly in formation, most often in a V because we need to flap pretty much all the time when we are flying and when we flap close to each other it helps to collectively push through the air resistance.” “OOHHH!” said the class. “Our speed depends on the winds and most often we prefer clear weather and a brisk tailwind.”

“While flying, we also talk to one another, passing on information and taking orders from Miska, our leader.”

Zoey suppressed a yawn and resisted sleep.

But, ever since the class, they waited on tender hooks, for the decision on the date of their journey to be taken.

One evening, Miska gave the call. The command. With a lot of scurrying of feet, the water rippled and babbled, and the senior flamingoes ran forward with their wings stretched sideways and their necks out forwards. With one smooth motion, they took off into the air...soaring...soaring.

It was dark and as Zoey looked down all she could see was tiny pinpricks of light. Their journey was long and tiring. As she flew, she remembered Sakari’s lessons. They did stop a couple of times to rest. Just when she thought she could fly no more, Misko told them they had arrived at their destination. They began their descent.

Zoey saw a beautiful lake. There were other birds there, whom the older flamingoes greeted like long-lost friends. The chatter was noisy but happy. Zoey looked down into the water and was amazed by the great variety of fish. She fell in love with the place immediately.

“This is going to be my home forever,” she thought to herself.

With each day, the scenery around them changed and every day was as enjoyable as the next. Days passed and they settled down to life in the lake.

Then, one day Miska announced, “Okay, my dears, it is time to go home. So get packing.”

Zoey decided she would not leave. When it was time to fly off, she hid herself among the pelicans and storks.

“Fly away, little Zoey. Don’t stay back. It does not augur well...,” they warned. But Zoey was adamant. When she saw the pat up in the sky honking their way back home, she danced a little jig in the water. The older pelicans and storks shook their heads and worried.

The storklings, storklets and toddlers didn’t want to have anything much to do with Zoey. Now that she was alone, she found the days stretched ahead long and boring. The sun was brighter and stronger too, making her uncomfortable. She was beginning to feel ill.

Then one day, when she woke up, she found she was the only bird in the lake.

“Aha! This is my big day. I have the whole lake for myself and all the fish in the world.” But even before half the day had gone by she was miserable. She startled at every noise, and squawked at every shadow. Tears filled her eyes. She sat down at the water’s edge and began to cry. What began as a sniffle soon grew into a storm and at the end of it, she was so tired that she fell asleep.

She was woken up by the sound of loud honking. She looked up and saw a pink glow in the sky. The flamingoes were coming back, she thought happily. And, what an infernal racket they were making, she smiled. They landed close to her. Misko and Saraki came running towards her shouting and waving their hands.

“I’m sorry,” said Zoey. “Yes, I know I should have flown out with you. It’s just that I love this place.”

“We all love this place, and that is why we come back here every year. But, we cannot stay here all year long. Soon, the food will disappear and it will become very hot. We cannot survive the heat,” said Saraki, patiently.

“Now, get a move on,” said Misko. “We’ve lost precious time with this escapade. I don’t want us getting stuck in the rain.”

Zoey flapped her wings, raised them and took off into the sky.

“See you next year, pretty lake,” she said.