'Thud'!! In the dense dark chill of the wee hours of the morning, it sounded discordant and loud. I just walked into the deserted enclosure of the abandoned auditorium to hear another muffled :thud" followed by a faint screech of an owl.The sounds emanated from the far end of the deserted building.
It looked eerie in the pre-dawn darkness , with one very tired looking yellow sodium vapour lamp throwing a small pool of pale yellow light on the entrance gate.The same sound again, a long drawn out screech, as if a call of distress,followed by a 'thud'.This time I had swivelled my head just in time to catch a glimpse of a furry brown ball flying across the lawn, screeching all the while, before hitting one of the glass windows high up in the attic.
What I saw when I reached closer was enough to render me speechless.
An owl was trapped behind the tall glass windows of the attic,presumably the female , fluttering helplessly,her furried body pressed close to the glass . Even in the semidarkness of the wee morning, her fear and anxiety was palpable. While our Sir Galahad made repeated trips to a deodar bordering the lawns , launching himself like a missile, trying to dash open the window. Judging by the tired efforts of the male, this crusade had been carried on well through the night.
It was so humane and compassionate a sight that I can still recall it in all its vividness.
Saving a damsel in distress, as age old a theme as ever, the theme for countless movies, stories, battles was being enacted in front of me in all its gut wrenching, awe inspiring,passion-filled earthiness.
This scene was enacted for the next two nights too.
The third night was the movie evening, and the doors of the auditorium was thrown open for its human occupants. I presume, that is when the pair made good their escape. For the drama-on-the-auditorium-lawns stopped and I think I saw a peaceful couple of owls hunting at the base of the street lamp for moths.
It looked eerie in the pre-dawn darkness , with one very tired looking yellow sodium vapour lamp throwing a small pool of pale yellow light on the entrance gate.The same sound again, a long drawn out screech, as if a call of distress,followed by a 'thud'.This time I had swivelled my head just in time to catch a glimpse of a furry brown ball flying across the lawn, screeching all the while, before hitting one of the glass windows high up in the attic.
What I saw when I reached closer was enough to render me speechless.
An owl was trapped behind the tall glass windows of the attic,presumably the female , fluttering helplessly,her furried body pressed close to the glass . Even in the semidarkness of the wee morning, her fear and anxiety was palpable. While our Sir Galahad made repeated trips to a deodar bordering the lawns , launching himself like a missile, trying to dash open the window. Judging by the tired efforts of the male, this crusade had been carried on well through the night.
It was so humane and compassionate a sight that I can still recall it in all its vividness.
Saving a damsel in distress, as age old a theme as ever, the theme for countless movies, stories, battles was being enacted in front of me in all its gut wrenching, awe inspiring,passion-filled earthiness.
This scene was enacted for the next two nights too.
The third night was the movie evening, and the doors of the auditorium was thrown open for its human occupants. I presume, that is when the pair made good their escape. For the drama-on-the-auditorium-lawns stopped and I think I saw a peaceful couple of owls hunting at the base of the street lamp for moths.
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