9
Dominga
searches for Darzi
Finally, it was Phoolchuki who gave
the proper advice to Dominga. He told Dominga to go and consult the Darzi, the
tailor bird. Darzi was known to be very wise. Very wise, and very skilled.
Actually, Teetiri thought that Darzi was very wise, very skilled, very clever and
a very good songster. Darzi’s song was usually at a very high pitch, but that
call was that of a master at bird song. Nobody could mistake Darzi’s song.
Also, Darzi was an expert at hiding his nest and was also known to be able to
skillfully construct it with his beak. That was a skill that was very necessary
for all birds, thought Teetiri to herself. It was very useful to be able to do
activities such as stitching leaves together with one’s beak. Teetiri wished
she could also stitch big leaves together and make a nest that was protected
from all enemies.
Dominga went in search of Darzi. He
was quite embarassed at having to seek Darzi’s help. This was because Dominga
thought that he was the better songster than Darzi. He had always boasted about
his abilities to Chimini and her large family, to Teetiraa’s cousins and to
Kotwal. They had all agreed with him. But Domingi had once told him in the
midst of another long argument that the other birds had merely agreed in order
to stop him from talking about his songs and his skills. He did not even
remember what the argument was all about. How could one remember all these
silly things?
Domingi - knew that Dominga would not listen to her
The other birds had stopped arguing with Dominga.
[Photograph - Govinda Swami]
Now he had to search for Darzi. He met
Teetiri and Phoolchuki. He told them that he knew that Darzi would love to
laugh at him. But Phoolchuki and Teetiri had told him that Darzi was a wise
bird and would not laugh at him. Teetiri actually offered to go with him to
search for Darzi. The secret in searching for Darzi was to wait for his song.
Phoolchuki also offered his help. Why were all these birds helping him,
wondered Dominga. Why could they not just let him search for Darzi all by
himself? Did they think that he was not capable of searching for Darzi?
Finally the three birds began to
search for Darzi. Phoolchuki suggested that they should go and wait near the
ber bushes. Teetiri agreed and went to walk around near the ber bush and kept
searching for insects to eat. Phoolchuki flitted in and out of the branches of
the ber bush and the nearby karonda (Carissa Karvanda???) bush. There were always
nice tasty insects in these bushes. Some of those ants were quite delicious.
The sap juice from the ber and karonda bushes tempted many insects to wander
around the branches and Phoolchuki really enjoyed herself feeding near these
bushes. Even Dominga, in spite of all his worries and anger could not resist
eating up some of the ants that were stuck in the melting sap as it flowed
around the branches.
And then, suddenly, there it was, Darzi’s
call, “Toowheeet-Toowheeet-whittoooo-whittooooo-whitoooo”. Very shrill, and
very loud. It sounded like it came from the upper branches of the babool tree,
Phoolchuki said. No, no, said Teetiri, it sounded more like it came from the
adjacent neem tree. Dominga was amazed. He knew that this call seemed like it
came repeatedly from both the neem and babool trees. There seemed to be
actually two Darzi birds. Must be brothers, for otherwise how could one male
Darzi bird tolerate the other so close to each other?
Phoolchuki volunteered to fly into the
babool tree and request Darzi to come down to the ber bush so that Teetiri
could also participate in the discussion. Teetiri could not climb into the
branches of trees. She could fly about around the canopy but could not perch on
the tree branches. Darzi would have to come down so that Teetiri could also
participate in the discussion.
