It was April in Chennai. Kaka the crow and his friends had been flying looking for food all day. Just then, Kaka noticed a few old women on a terrace laying out vadams to dry. The ladies chatted as they laid out the dough. Kaka and his friends looked at each other. All that they had to do was to wait for the grandmas to leave and then pounce on the food.
The old women decided to sit in a tent, and keep watch. “This is going to be more difficult than I thought.” said Kaka.
Scouting
Kage, Kaka’s friend replied, “I cannot wait any longer.” Kage took off. She flew close to the vadams and dived.
But the grandmas were quick. They came charging at the crows with black umbrellas. “Aiyeeeeee.” Kage returned to the mango tree.
“I will wait and watch. These grandmas are clever. But I wonder how long they will sit there. Hey Kakki,” Kaka called out to a younger crow who had just joined their gang. “Will you wait here and signal when these grandmothers leave?”
“Yes, sir,” Kakki replied.
Hours passed but the vadams were never left alone. The old women took turns to watch over them. The grandmas then settled down to a lunch of curd rice and mango pickle.
Kakki waited patiently, but nothing much changed. As evening approached, Kakki’s hopes rose when he finally saw them move towards the door. But alas! They were leaving with the vadams . He flew over the terrace sadly and spotted a few vadams lying on the terrace. He said “Kaaa” and signalled to the others.
Kaka was desperately looking for supper. When he received the signal about the leftover vadams , he was far away. He flew as fast as he could. He found his friends waited anxiously on the parapet. On the terrace were the leftover vadams . But around their meal were three boys playing with their cars and trucks, using the leftover vadams as rocks that their vehicles carried.
The crows were impatient. “Kaa!” they cried. But the little boys did not seem to hear and continued to play. Kaka then came up with an idea.
He remembered that the little boys liked to shoo away crows. He had seen children laugh as he used to fly away when they said “shoo.” He chose a spot not too near but close enough for the children to notice him. He then said “Kaa” in the deepest voice possible. The children jumped up and said “shoo.” He began to fly from one spot to another as if he was playing hopscotch.
He kept crowing and they ran along shouting “shoo” and giggling. The other crows rushed in for their meal. They picked some extra for Kaka and left. Kaka, seeing that his meal was safe, said “Kaaa” one last time and flew away. Back home, the crows munched on crispy vadams and told stories of Kaka’s heroism. The vadams were delicious. Kakki, of course, got an extra share and a permanent position in the gang. After all, it was worth the wait.
Game: >On the look out
