The Budgie and the Olive Tree

Life here is sometimes just strange.

It’s the third of January, the first non-holiday of the year. The children are not yet back at school. I am nursing a post-Christmas bug so at 10:30am was still lounging around in PJs and a, colour-coordinated, Christmas pashmina nursing a cup of tea whilst catching up with the world.

The children from the nearest house are encouraged by their mother to play outside. They have several default volumes starting just below ear-splitting and increase from there. I can see why she would be keen to have them out of the house from time to time. Sitting at my desk I could hear their communal volume increasing and a new intensity in their “play”. Looking into the garden several of them were visible climbing over our back wall so I went to investigate.

Remember the PJs and the pashmina? Well, I added a pair of blue & green outdoor flipflops, just to coordinate. The children weren’t looking for a football, as I first thought, they were gathered round our olive tree.

I looked confused. They pointed and flapped their arms and clubbed together their English to come up with bird.

Cue more confusion from me. It’s an olive tree, it’s always got birds in it.

They countered with bafflement that this strange English woman could not see the bright yellow budgie perched on one of the branches. Fair point, now that I’d spotted it, it really was quite obvious.

Their English and my Greek were not sufficient to ask if this is an escapee from the neighbours or whether this was some sort of exotic visitor. Actually, the language issue was irrelevant as they ignored me while one of them climbed the tree to try and capture the budgie. The bird was having none of this and as soon as he got close it flew away.

The children were last seen chasing across the village following the bird. I suspect it may be a long day for all concerned!

Mands

BTW, Ian missed all of this. If someone were to drop him an email this morning asking about his new feathered-friend it could be quite interesting ;-)

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