Sweetie

When the children were small, and constantly doing something cute or funny, I made it an evening ritual to share with my husband something positive that he had missed during the day while he was off working in the fields; He was a peach farmer. This was a selfish strategy on my part, but I found that it eased the tensions for the both of us. And ended the day with a sure smile. Now, that the children are in various stages of teenage hood, they are responsible for my increased stress levels…hence our interest in pets. We choose parrots purely by accident. Our oldest daughter had a momentary attachment to a bird in a pet store. She flashed a sweet smile and begging eyes and my husband caved. Six birds later, my den now resembles an aviary pet store. Sweetie, our Amazon, was rescued from a precious woman whose time was suddenly re-focused towards the birth of her first grand daughter. He, Sweetie, arrived one late Sunday evening already knowing how to speak. His voice mimicked another Amazon’s, whose voice mimicked her owner. I guess you could call it a recording of a recording.

The journey to our home took about 90 minutes. Sweetie was placed in a pet-carrier which sat in my lap. He kept making these little noises. I would soon discover that his little noses are only made when he is scared, as he must have been that day, traveling with strangers in a foreign vehicle to an unknown destination.

I sang ‘Old McDonald Had A Farm”, his favorite song. He stunk really badly, as only an Amazon can do. Whose bright idea was it to name him ‘Sweetie”?