That pair of crows (Part 2nd ) —

(Recap — In the first part I described about the backdrop of the story related to the country side ambiance. In continuation to that ……)

At that period of time, a custom or trend was in rife, when teen age boys came back from their school, in the extra-time or in their vacation period, parents happened to send them ceremoniously to the agriculture fields. Stress were specifically on boys to visit the land fields. It was backed by the logic, as if, they were certain to get introduced with their ancestral agrarian calling. My family was a medium size land holder, (as per the standard in rife in our locality.)

A considerable portion of this land located in Bhur or Bhud side. Bhud land is type of a land that contained fertile soil mixed with sand or coarse shingle or small sized stones in abundance. Often, my family was in habit to give it on Batayee system to other farmers (In vernacular on partnership.) In this customary system, a land holder gave the right to grow the crops to some other small  level or land less farmers. In this pattern, 1/3rd of the total expenditure of seeds, compost too were borne by land holder and rest by the partner farmer. The rest of expenses and and other hard works such as tilling, irrigation, watching of fields, harvesting were the responsibility of the partner. The total output of products were divided equally, be it in shape of grains or cash.

As far as my personal aptitude for countryside Arcadian life was concerned, it always greatly enticed me.This often prompted me to visit land fields after coming back home from my school. Specifically, when pea crops were grown. I was but to visit fields regularly. People who are borne and reared up in city ambiance can not imagine about the bustle of the rustic life. In that season, the entire expanse of large area looked somewhat crowded by the presence of laborers working in the fields. Laborers half bent busied in plucking pea pods and collecting them into side bags. Some of them culling- out soiled pea pods from the piles of pea pods, so the fresh and unstained pea pods be sent to the wholesale vegetable market and fetch the proper price. Birds guards too remained on alert watch.

At the evening time, it was a beatitude to watch retreating flocks of big black crows. It was in fact a thrilling venture for me. No sooner, the dark of the evening began to fall, firstly flocks of crows, who had ventured to assail far Eastern side of the land fields to fill the stomach, begun to retreat. After that, flocks of nearer location followed these flocks. Every such flock, at least contained  black birds counting approximately between two hundred to three hundreds in number. These flocks would fly up in the sky merely at the altitude of one hundred to two hundred feet; as I could surmise at that teen age of mine.

In that process of retreating, birds kept on cawing incessantly in their hoarse, raucous sound. Our village located at the Eastern side of the Main city at a considerable distance; at the evening time, they seemed to fly back towards the Western side of the city. In true sense, these were the Urban crows. At that period of time, main city too was thinly populated and inside the city numerous big orchards of mango, leechi, guava existed. Otherwise also, my this foot hill district had earned a good name for its quality leechi fruit production. These were so aromatic and delicious.

Besides, a good number of large mango orchards too had their presence. Every such orchards used to have big clusters of bamboo plants. Such sort of bamboo’s plant clusters and old grown big mango trees were the roosting place of these crows. Yes! One thing was common in the habit of these retreating birds. At the retreating time, never they attempted to assail any field to peck pea pods. Always they seemed in hurry to reach back to the roosting-place before falling of thick dark of the evening. Yes, at the morning time, they were insistent to land at every suitable pea field to fill the stomach.

At the morning time, the noise of bird watchers to scare the birds were heard collectively and continuously, Besides, the whizzing sound of thrown stones from sling shots by bird watchers too kept on floated in the air. In the later age of my youth, when I developed an interest as an amateur bird lover, I realized, why crows remained in haste in evening time retreat. In fact, in city side, street electric light were put on earlier at the evening time, that happened to dazzle the visions of birds and distract to reach the destination. Merely to avoid that dazzle, they seemed in hurry to fly back.

In between of my that period of life as a teen age boy in pea fields, I happened to develop a hobby to watch these returning birds continuously. Later on I added one more habit in this drive. I started to count the number of flocks returning within an hour. In this counting process, I continuously used to keep my face skyward, lest not a single flock should pass away without being counted. Later on I realized, I could count the numbers of flocks flying over my head and around my land only. Whist the expanse of Bhur land was unlimited and such flocks after flocks returned over the other vast expanse in the sky, which I was unable to count.

But despite of this disappointment, never I gave up counting the number retreating flocks. The truth is, never I could successfully count the numbers even of the flocks passing over my head. Somewhere, deep down in my heart, in my that teen age as boy with green experience, I was on a mission to  to count the number of crows, if not exactly than in approximate. In all, my approximate computation suggested me one fact only, they were in myriads and it was hard to count them in number.  On the other hand, It amazed my young mind, myriads of crows dwelt in main city, but never they visited my countryside in rest of the season of the year. Though, in this entire process of counting, I took notice of an another single pair of crows, that too was, because of their singular pattern of returning back home. ( End of the part 2nd.) Penned by — Vinay Pharasi —–