So the President’s Macaws returned, did anybody hear their stories

Pamodhi Kuruppu

My news feed was full of different stories that day. Some posts on avurudu, then the toy pistols in Hambantota and some political commentaries. Among them were some Macaws which caught my eyes. Never knew that the President was a Macaw lover! However the urge to find them back was quite funny for me. And now the latest is that they’ve been found. It made me laugh more. Just wondered if President was scared that the Macaws will divulge the state secrets. What if they flew to Cameron’s home? And even Obama’s, if the Macaws had enough petrol to fly across Pacific. Anyway President won’t mind it. Even then he invited Jonathan Miller for a tea, when Cameron and the channel 4 brashly announced of the human rights violations. Done or undone, whatever! But if the birds did fly, they would have surely been the President’s Angry Birds.

Leave away the Millers, Camerons and Obamas. Leave away that heavy politics. Poor them. They are trapped inside the metal cages again. I was reminded of Federico Garcia Lorca’s “House of Bernada Alba” which was read and even watched by me four or five years back. Bernada sees Angustias – the eldest wearing makeup. Upon the fact that Angustias would defy her orders to remain in the state of mourning, Bernada violently scrubs the makeup off her face. Maria Josepha, the elderly mother of Bernada announces that she wants to marry. She even warns that she will turn her daughters’ hearts to dust if they cannot be free. The “makeup” is a mark of freedom of the Generation 98 culture in Spain at that time. There was freedom growing in Spain, little by little. But not in Bernada’s house. Bernada was desperate by the traditions, the so called conservatives. It is not Angustias who matters the most. In my head Adela, the youngest of Bernada was recalled by these escaped Macaws. Instead of remaining in mourning black, Adela wears a green dress contrary to norms and even threatens to run away in streets in search of a man to marry.

Lorca’s Adela and Angustias are just book characters. But we all are Adelas and Angustias at some point in life. None of us like to be locked in houses, not to have talked with people, not to have enjoyed or not to be heard by people. A part of our souls always urge for new things. To explore the world, to meet new people, to try things, to fall and get crushed, to stand straight and erect. Even to go a little bit away from norms.

So does the Birds. Even those Macaws.

They just would have wanted to see what’s happening around. To break the bars like Adela did. What would a cage bring them? Will they see the sun rising from the eastern skies? Will they at least see the starts up? Do they know about Cameron?  Or at least heard of Miller?

(First published in the FREE section of "The Nation" newspaper, in mid April 2014)