pet shop wonders...

Sarah lived alone. It was this fact that spurred her to purchase two rather large parrots, with green wings and yellow beaks. They were the only two birds left in the small pet store near her house. A little Indian man stood behind the counter. He held his hands behind his back, and teetered back and forth as he called out his greeting in a language barely noticeable as English. The room had a yellow haze hanging about it. Little gerbils crawled about lazily in cages next to the birds. A fat orange cat mewed and strutted past Sarah, rubbing his long back along her legs and purring contentedly.

Sarah moved toward the counter to ask the man about a pet that would be best for her. The man just smiled and raised his arm to the side, pointing toward the glorious birds. Sarah made her way to them hesitantly. She wanted a pet to keep her company but had never had birds before. Cats, dogs, chickens, rabbits, even a wild pig that roamed about the yard of her parents’ farm. But never birds.

The birds sat very still, like statues. Sarah had to stick her finger in one of the cages to get him to move. Just to see if they were, in fact, alive. One bird merely cocked his head to one side, then looked away again. The other began to chatter furiously. His words were nonsense at first, then he began to repeat things Sarah was sure he heard from other customers. At point he reprimanded a small boy for dragging his feet.

Sarah had to laugh. She was intrigued by the curious strength and aloofness of the one and the friendly outgoing nature of the other. She moved along the rest of the strange store, passing snake tanks, tapping on the glass of a tarantula, petting the soft fuzzy fur of some rather lazy rabbits. Meanwhile, the owner just stood smiling. At one point a woman joined him, speaking in a language Sarah could only imagine was Indian or whatever other language was their original language.

Their voices were kept to a low murmur as Sarah made her way around the store, the orange cat lazily following behind, stopping to rub again empty cages on the ground. He closed his eyes and purred as he did this, looking content. The voices grew louder, though, and Sarah could tell they were arguing. She woman’s voice was more dominant and she kept gesturing to a door near the back of the room.

And then, just as abruptly as it started, it was over. The woman had stormed back toward the door and slammed it shut. The happy little man was now crying, his head buried in his hands, sobbing silently. Sarah had sympathy for the man and moved toward the counter.

“Is there anything I can do,” she asked, noting the awkwardness of the moment. The man removed one hand from his head, only to gesture her away. She stood there a bit longer, waiting to see if he would change his mind.

“Well, I’d like to buy your birds, if they’re still available.” She pointed to the back wall where the odd pair were stationed. At this the man perked up. He wiped his eyes on a handkerchief he’d just pulled from his pocket. He then replaced it and moved quickly away from behind the counter.

“You ever raise birds,” he asked in his broken English. Sarah nodded her head that no, she hadn’t. “It is very simple,” he continued. “You must treat them just like you would a human, with same respect. They need space. They need to be loved. You pretend they are new roommates and you will all be fine.” Sarah found this to be strange advice but did not think herself in any place to question the man who had obviously kept them alive for this however long. They were now at the cages and sarah was beginning to doubt her decision. The cages seemed to have blown up and she wondered how she would get them home.

“How much are the cages?” she asked, to which the man responded by dismissing her again with a wave of his hand. She looked at him strangely, then began to help him pick up the cages. They were not heavy, just bulky and the birds were obviously disgruntled. They spread their wings, hopping about on the bar that ran across the cage and squawking in tremendously loud voices. Even the one that had previously seemed so astute and aloof seemed genuinely disturbed and upset. He eyed the man who was now holding his cage with a murderous eye.

Meanwhile Sarah worked to shift the weight of her cage so that she could more easily carry it to the car. Her bird was also eyeing her, but in more of a curious fashion, as though she were unlike any creature he had ever seen.

“There a couple important things to remember,” the man continued as they walked to her car. Sarah expected him now to elaborate on the birds’ diet or what to do to clean out their cages or tips on handling them. She wondered if they had their wings clipped or if it was normal to let them fly about the room.

“You must remember to never let them near the window,” he said, looking at her.

“Oh, because they’ll try to escape, right?” she asked, smiling and thinking that the man must find her to be extremely ignorant in the ways of birds.

“No,” he said sternly and this time turned to face her. “You must never let them near a window. Never. I will mean death.” At this he put the cage in the back seat of Sarah’s car. Despite her earlier worries, it fit perfectly. The man said no more and Sarah was too stunned to question him on his meaning of the word “death.” She let it go that he must not know the correct English term for what he really meant.

They got both cages in with no problems. When Sarah reached for her wallet, the man again dismissed her with a wave.

“How much do I owe you,” Sarah insisted. The man only smiled.

“These birds have been my companions for many years. I am happy only to have them with a good owner.” He smiled again and walked back to the store.

“Wait!” Sarah called. “What do I feed them.”

“Do not worry,” said the man. “They will know what to do.” Sarah was now sincerely regretting this decision. But she could not take them back in. The man seemed so relieved to have gotten rid of them. Plus, they were both now staring at her as though they knew she were now their bread and butter. An overwhelming sense of responsibility coursed through her and she realized she did not know their names. She would just have to name them herself, she resolved. And so, the two unnamed birds and Sarah set off to start their own adventure.