“Oh! It is the Ashy Prinia,” exclaimed one of the residents in my apartment complex on our WhatsApp group. “I am very sorry to see it in that state.”
I scrolled up to find the photo of a poor small bird badly hurt. I could recollect its name as Sambal kathirkuruvi in Tamil. What I gathered from the message was that a severely injured bird had landed on a balcony. The resident, who could not bear to see its suffering, called out for help on WhatsApp.
As there were many other morning chores lined up for me, I kept the phone away. Little did I know the importance of these messages to my neighbours, and here I am narrating the sequence of events that led to the rescue of the bird.
I can vividly recollect one of my neighbours stating that he could nurse the bird back to health if it was put in his care. But there were other plans being chalked out. One person had called a bird rescue centre.
Till they arrived, the bird was given food and drink but it refused both. In a day or two, the rescuers arrived despite the lockdown. They took the bird away, and I thought that its story had concluded. But there was more to come.
A few days later, the bird’s photo popped up again in the WhatsApp group.
“The rescue centre sent us this pic. The bird’s food pipe had been damaged, and that was the reason it had refused to eat anything. But the rescuers are leaving no stone unturned for it to recover,” the message said.
The bird was bandaged, and I was amazed to see how this small creature was catching everybody’s attention even during this pandemic. A few residents were still tracking the bird’s health. One morning, I saw the picture of a hale and healthy bird. The message read, “Ready to fly”.
All these made me sit back and think. In this fast-paced world, when everybody is immersed in their own lives, there does exist a world of humanity, generosity and service towards other creatures however small they may turn out to be. Even amid this pandemic, the rescue of a helpless little creature had taken place so efficiently and perfectly.
The pandemic may pose a great threat to our lives but acts of service can soothe our souls.
priyasri_m_1976@yahoo.com
