A Sequel of The Yellow Bird

Some see a hopeless end, while others see an endless hope. ~Author Unknown

The morning air was filled with the familiar happy chirrups of the birds. I poked my head out of the window. A thing I’d been unconsciously doing occasionally for the past week after the Yellow Bird episode. Imagine my surprise when I found a new nest hanging from my mop again!

I couldn’t decide to be glad or worried. The sense of lost when the previous nest was blown away still lingers. Looking back, I had just encountered a setback and the Yellow Bird had inspired me to face each problem with strength and determination instead of drowning in despair.

That’s the wonder of nature. While we are wasting time worrying about almost everything, the Yellow Birds are living through each day with pure hard work and determination. While we are hesitant on the next move, the Yellow Birds have already built up their hope once more. We wouldn’t know how things will turn out this time but every endeavour carries a chance. The best I can do is to let them have their space and pray that all turn out well.

When I broke the news to my brother, he wasn’t as optimistic as me.

“Disgusting again!!! You should put a stop to that and preempt them from repeating the same mistake of making a futile effort n endangering their little souls.”

“Eh… How to? I’ve been hanging my mop outside all along!”

“Hang a sign on it, saying "Danger! Do Not Build Your Nest Here!".”

“Well, ok. Maybe I’ll try that the next time if their nest really got blown away again.”

“So you want to give them false hopes again? So cruel!”

“But they have already built so much! It’ll be even crueler if I throw their nest away now!! Maybe they will succeed this time?”

“Even if they succeed, after they lay their eggs, it will also fall sooner or later. Either a strong wind or rain can shatter it into pieces.”

“What if it doesn’t? I must at least give them a chance to try. Sigh… Dilemma…”

“It's just like you know they are heading the wrong direction and you let them continue repeating their mistake. As you put it last time, a destruction of their nest before they succeed is a blessing in disguise. If a nest in construction was destroyed, only efforts are wasted. If a nest with lives is destructed, then they may commit suicide and maybe these young parents won't return to your mop.”

“But they do succeed on other people's mop before. If I condemn them without giving them a chance, they'll have no chance to succeed at all. I really don’t have the heart to destroy a nest which is 80% done. I don’t even know when they started building because I didn't mop my floor for past few days.”

“1. Your floor must be damn dirty now!!
2. Will it pain you more if you see a 100% done nest destructed?
3. Will it pain you even more if you see a 100% done nest plus lives demolished?
4. Chance of their survival is almost equal Singapore's chance of winning World Cup, knowing that Singapore doesn’t even qualify for second qualifying round, let alone the actual World Cup. You should know how low the chance is.”

“I know what you're driving at. But… But… But… My floor not that dirty ok? I did mop last week! Sigh… What should I do? It rained yesterday but nest is still intact. I really don’t know. I’ll leave it to heaven's will. Anyway, I don’t need the mop yet.”

“Ok. Let’s not discuss this topic anymore. We’ll see how it goes. I thought you should mop the floor on alternate days?”

“I vacuum more than I mop. Mopping with the kids around is very annoying. They tend to leave footprints.”

“Convenient excuse!”

“… …”

Well, the rest goes about my laziness, a total contrast from the Yellow Birds’ hardworking nature.

Something to clarify though: my brother is not a hard-hearted person. He is someone who has a heart of gold, always forgiving and forever overlooking the flaws of his beloved ones. He too is concerned about the birds but in his own way. He prefers to pave the way for things to attain success. I, on the other hand, normally let nature take its course.

Little Yellow Birds with big determination and immense perseverance.

Big me with little drive and peanut dedication.

Irony.