My Tenants

It all began when we moved to our home. It was brand new and so empty. We still had plenty to do for the insides of the house. I was in my 2nd sem when we moved here. Two months into living in our house I noticed a nest on our terrace and in it were 3 eggs .I used to constantly go and check the nest. One day I saw three little birdies craning their necks looking at me, they had their mouths open expecting food. They were smaller than my thumb. Their head was as big as the remainder of their body. I kept visiting them till one day they were gone. I thought ah well they had to leave some day. Then came my third sem, I had just started classes and as always during the odd semesters we are plagued by the rains which fall only when I’m on my way to the college or when I’m on my way back home, till then the rains hold out. On one such day I went to my room to find grass strewn all over my bed. The next day I found a trail of grass leading to the loft in my room. On climbing up there I saw one busy bird weaving furiously to make a tea cup size nest. I was pleased that they choose my room to build their house and I considered it a secret between me and the birds. So I did not tell my parents about the activities in my room. The couple used to start working early in the morning, and they went about their work noiselessly. After almost 2 months I could hear a chorus of chirping and I climbed up to see a brand new set of babies. I couldn’t keep this to myself and had to tell my mom about it. She gave me a lecture on how I have to remember we have Fenny at home who would probably attack the birds incase they got to close or were not on guard. Now that was a valid reason but the birds were to high up for Fenny to attack them so i didn't worry.

When summer came they built their nest out on the terrace and when it rained they were back in my room. After their second monsoon in my room they decided I was harmless. They used to fly closer to me, follow me when they weren’t busy with the nest. They knew they had a free reign in the house. I occupy the first floor. It’s got the room and the study. Initially the birds wouldn’t venture outside the room but they soon started flying around in the study as well. They used to sit on the monitor and watch me when I was doing my work or when I was just studying. I never shooed them, they probably thought I was the coolest human on the planet.

Once when I woke up I could see from the corner of my eye that the silly, stupid, sparrow was sitting on my pillow watching me closely, next to me was Fenny. Now I know Fenny is a sweetheart and she would do nobody any harm unless she knew they were a threat to us or her. So Fenny just stared at bird; bird stared back at Fenny, the next thing I know Fenny is back snoozing, now who would have thought she’d react like that!

This is my 9th sem and the birds have now taken over the whole of the first floor, now I don’t have one pair but two pairs of birds building their nests up stairs, one in my bathroom and the other in the study. They aren’t all that quiet any more. When I’m ironing my uniform in the morning they start bickering and no amount of shouting “shut-up” stops them from bickering. I think the women keep nagging their hubbie birds about “how nice their nest is”. But in the evenings when they are done for the day the couples take their positions on the bathroom and study room window sills respectively and glide away to lala land and alls quite till the sun comes up and I wake up to the screeching of my friendly tenants.