The Parrot’s Promised Land

/ roughwighting

parrot, Kauai, talking parrot, blog postTwo weeks ago, my neighbor Missy dropped off her parrot JOJO at my house and raced off to visit her ailing father in Florida.

At the time, JoJo, an ancient Psittacine, prophesized that Missy’s dad would die.

JoJo was right. (Parrot Plot Points)

JoJo was right about a lot of things, including the fact that Missy would return in 10 days, but only to gather some clothes, check on her winged Wise One, and to promise she’d “make it up to me” for parrot sitting the irascible, irresistible, at times irritating colorful bird.

“Don’t believe everything JoJo says,” Missy warned as she sprinted back to the airport. “She’s a bit of a devil in disguise.”

My neighbor smiled to soften her words, but JoJo winked at me, fluffing her blue/yellow/orange feathers while squawking at Missy, “Nice knowin’ you.”

Unbeknownst to Missy, JoJo had told me most of her secrets by then. One evening, with the lights turned low, soft jazz music in the background, JoJo out of her cage and sitting on my shoulder, she murmured the truth of her origins. sunset, Kauai, tropical paradise, palm trees

“Missy claims I’m 36, failing to add the 100 years I lived in my land before I was captured.” JoJo’s parrot squawk became a captivating whisper.

“My people are the Manu aloha. My desire is to return to my ancestral place of origin.”

Kauai, rainbow, paradiseJoJo’s romantic stories of her family (“wise ones who hide in the depths of the palm trees, manifesting the rain, sun and rainbows for the island dwellers”) convinced me that I should help her escape and return to the world where she belonged.

“You’ll fall in love with my land,” JoJo promised. “The sun and the surf and the creatures of our kingdom will all become part of your family, too.” Kauai red head, Kauai bird

I can’t tell you how I spirited JoJo onto the plane for the 10-hour trip. I’ll give a clue – JoJo the Amazing was able to minimize herself when the time warranted. Her abilities must remain secret, because otherwise her species would be hunted and used for nefarious reasons.

egret, Kauai birdJoJo used no hyperbole in her stories to me. Within an hour of our arrival at her island, magnificent, winged beings of every color of the rainbow surrounded us. They spoke excitedly to JoJo in their language.

Then, they flew soft circles of thanks around me, my hair blowing in the breeze of their gratefulness. Hibiscus, Kauai, Kauai flora, paradise

My little cabin here is open to the ocean breezes, and I receive winged visitors daily. When they flutter their feathers, a gentle rain waters the Hibiscus in my garden, and minutes later, the sun beams her rays.

Me? I may never return. I don’t need to decide now. Thanks to JoJo, my novel is almost complete. Why would I leave a muse who not only changed my life, but also brought my fiction to new life?

Honu, turtle, Kauai, Hawaiian turtleFor now, I’m off for a swim with the Honu, with JoJo flying closely above me.

Anyone care to join me?

100 thoughts on “The Parrot’s Promised Land”

    • Ohhh, Balroop. My fantasy of JoJo and my “almost finished” novel is still flying with JoJo in her mystical island. But I’m hoping/believing that just by conjuring her up, my novel will start flowing faster. ❤

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    • JoJo is an enigma and a mystery for sure. How she found me, and decided to trust me with her species’ secrets, I’ll never know. But I do feel very lucky!! 🙂 (Thanks for enjoying my fantasy.) ❤

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    • I think a dream that includes mumu’s, sandals and birdsong is a pretty darn great dream! SO glad you liked the conclusion to JoJo’s tail (which is long, colorful, and beautiful. Oh, yes, glad you liked her tale as well. 🙂

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  22. What a delightful story! Would you call it Magical Realism? Are you a fan of Gabriel Garcia Marquez? I love his short stories and novels.

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    • Yes, I really enjoy reading books under the genre of magical realism. In the best ones, there’s more reality than magic, but the magic that is interspersed amongst the setting and plot makes the characters glow. I don’t read a lot of Marquez; I enjoy the books of Alice Hoffman and Sarah Addison Allen, good examples of magical realism.

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  23. Sometimes I can’t tell if your stories are fact or fiction, Pam. Lol. Maybe a little of both here. A delightful post and so glad to hear that your novel is almost complete. Thank goodness for muses in whatever form they take. ❤ ❤

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  27. I would join you in a skinny minute if I could. Loved the story… and I wish it were true and a place like that existed. It is akin to what I believe heaven might be like. Maybe someday we will know.

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    • The (weird/scary/fascinating) thing is that in a way, I create my own kind of paradise in my writing and stories. And somehow, I think they come from a real place. Here’s hoping. And thanks SO much for your comments and “being here.”

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  28. I just knew Jojo was psychic and had lots of secrets. So happy she was whisked back to her home as it should be. I probably wouldn’t leave either with fresh fruit growing everywhere. Yum. I feel so peaceful just reading this.

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    • Peace is in the mind of the beholder, Marlene. And in the mind of the writer and the reader. So thanks for the sweet compliment. To peace within as well as without. (And may JoJo swing by to visit us both from time to time.) ❤

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    • Another way we’re similar – I LOVE looking at the water. But even though I was a competive swimmer from ages of 7 through college, I’d rather stay dry now and watch the whales cavort far away. We’ll both sit on the beach towel wearing our large sun hats. 🙂

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  32. Before moving to Florida, I took a flight of fancy and fantasy at my writing desk one late November day . . . flying to Florida in my mind, conjuring up palm trees and sea breezes and pristine sand. Returning to reality a few hours later reminded me that if we Conceive it and Believe it, we can Achieve it.

    One month later, we flew to Florida for a 2 week stay that has turned into a 13 year stay.

    Follow your dreams!

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    • Thanks for your comment, Jennie. I’m discovering that the happier JoJo is, the more her feathers turn soft colors of lavender and turquoise. Isn’t that neat? I wish our bodies showed our emotional colors. Then again, moss green for aggravation wouldn’t look so great. Right now, though, I’m light blue. How about you? 🙂

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