SOLAR ECLIPSE

CORVUS SPLENDENS a.k.a. CROWS

The solar eclipse of 22nd July 2009 was supposedly the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century. As this news broke, all the news channels had this blaring in their 'Breaking News' section and I was overjoyed to ‘witness' the historic event.

Least did I care to know if Chennai fell in the umbra or at least the penumbra region of this solar eclipse. Not falling in these jargon terms also means that Chennai cannot have the slightest view of the eclipse like how it is meant to be in those regions. Nevertheless the semi-ignorant me (read semi as same-me) was all set to catch a sight of it.

The mobile that had never put the alarm option to use till then, had its first chance. The ellipse was said to be at its best view at 6:24 a.m. and so I had set my alarm to 6:00 a.m.

Titu-titu-titu titu.. titudu..titudu.. struck the alarm in a room that has never heard any noise other than snoring at that time of the hour.

As excited as I was, I sprang up from my bed and started packing my knapsack for my adventure trip to Space. Sorry, it was actually just to the terrace.

Included in my knapsack were my skipping rope, house keys, camera, mobile phone and earphones. If only I had a camcorder and a home theatre system, then maybe I would have carried them as well. I silently walked out of my room. As social concerns struck me, I made conscious efforts not to wake up anyone in the house. I got out of the house, locked the house door behind me and checked my time on the mobile. It showed 6:20 a.m. “Just four more minutes left, you Idiot.. Run..!!!”, my mind screamed at me as usual for my unpunctuality. “You shut up”, I screamed back at it, as I climbed helter-skelter up the terrace stairs.

Just as I reached the final step up, I realized that I had forgotten to take the terrace door keys. “Idiot.. Idiot.. Now what??”, my mind asked me, pouring all the revenge. My guilt held me from shouting back at it this time. I hate re-work in any form. But I had no choice then. I climbed down the stairs, opened the house door, picked the terrace keys, locked the house and rushed back. Two floors and perspiration combined, made me wonder why the terrace could not be built in the ground floor!

I finally opened the terrace door and checked my time again. It showed 6:30 a.m. “Late as usual.. Idiot!! ”, said my mind. “Just 6 minutes late. Not that bad” came up my defense for convenience. I rushed to a spot in the terrace that is nearest to the sun, in fullest hope of witnessing history. One look at the sky, and I saw History jumbling up its words that it now read as Mystery. “Today is the solar eclipse day right?” the confused me asked myself. All I saw was the sun popping its head above the clouds and the scene looked pretty much normal to me. Not that I have seen too many sunrises before to call it normal, but, I expected myself to go “Wow!” on the first glance at the sky. But unfortunately for me, I never even went near to half of the first U in Double U (W).

“Alright, not much effect in the sun, so now where is the moon?” I thought instantaneously. Now wait. “Why are you searching for the moon? Were you thinking you’ll be able to see the sun and the moon like you could see the egg white and the egg yolk in a bull’s eye? Damn you!!” my mind cuddled me once more. I realized that Silence is Golden, as I just shut up. So there was no sight of the moon as well. As embarrassment hugged me like the cold breeze of the morning, I turned around to see the terraces of the nearby houses hoping to find a company. Thank god, (the Sun God in particular) I noticed a girl standing in a terrace right behind mine. She looked like a girl who went to school, and was wearing a pair of black cooler glasses. I chuckled to myself and turned back, much happier now to see someone who was more ready for the occasion than I was. I convinced myself to be patient and steadily look at the sky.

Seconds passed. Minutes followed them. There was no sign of the heavenly bodies complying with nature’s order to stand in a straight line. Before I let the hours also go by, I picked up my camera and engaged myself on my favorite pastime. The first focus was on the normal looking sun. Click! The second focus was on the moon that was not found. No click!

I tried to forget the fact that the camera was originally brought to capture the solar eclipse, and I imagined like I had made the terrace visit only to click some classy pictures. Thanking my own constant support for myself, I started searching for other subjects for photography. There came by flying in rescue - the Crows!

Corvus Splendens is how the binominal nomenclature named them, is what Google later told me. Thanks to my expectations of the solar eclipse and the disappointment it brought me. The bird that was of least concern to the world including me suddenly seemed to voluminously win its reputation in full swing.

Gazing at the sky or the crows in the sky rather, I wondered why this species alone is underestimated by and large and considered to be of no importance. “Like you’ll care a damn about them, if only you had the Pelicans flying in Chennai!!” my mind teased. “Shut up you tasteless” I silenced it. Just because they are too common does not give them an edge down on their significance, I thought. One number of them is for sorrow. Two numbers of them is for joy. But ‘n’ number of them is just for ordinary? “Ridiculous!” I sighed. “Oh no..! She’s started it again!” my mind grumbled.

So what if the Crows can’t fly like the Eagles? So what if the Crows can’t sing like the Cuckoo? So what if the Crows can’t dance like the Peacocks? So what if the Crows can’t mimic like the Parrots? So what if the Crows are not as poised as the Ducks? So what if the Crows are not as majestic as the Swans? “So what?? So what!!” I over-reacted. “Crows can’t..! So that’s why.. that’s why!!”, my mind laughed.

Yet, my immense empathy for Crows continued. Then what can the crows do? Eh well, they cannot do anything more than being themselves. And that is something other birds cannot do. Of course the other birds can be themselves, but they can’t be Crows! Reason enough? “Oh shut up shut up you..!!! Please shut up!!” my mind cried.

I’ve never listened to my mind. That time was no exception, as I went on. When the thirsty Crow in Aesop’s fables dropped pebbles into a pitcher to raise the level of water, no one questioned its intelligence. But we happily build scarecrows on paddy fields and take it for granted that it is easy to fool them off. Why doesn’t anyone raise a call on this unjust presumption? Why this sudden discrimination? “Don’t you dare tell anyone that I am your mind”, my mind threatened. “If you’d like to be that humble, I’d let you be so” I said. “Shameless!!” it yelled back.

In the sky, across my terrace walls, above the lampposts, on the tree branch, around the puddle of rain water, there were crows.. crows.. crows everywhere. I looked at the murder of crows across the terrace and asked them “Hope you’ve heard it all. So, how was my defense for you all, dear esteemed creatures?”

“Kaw-Kaw-Kaw-Kaw” “Kaw-Kaw-Kaw-Kaw” “Kaw-Kaw-Kaw-Kaw” “Kaw-Kaw-Kaw-Kaw” they all shouted together and flew away. My near close association with the crows helped me translate that effortlessly. “Why are these humans so underestimated just because they are so common? So what if they cant fly like us? So what?? So what!!”

I packed my knapsack and headed downstairs.