MISS SPRIGHTLY'S FRIENDS

Early morning the mist, snow white and the sun is just up from the bed of clouds,time again to begin a new day. Our dear Miss Sprightly hiding under the soft quilt rubs her eyes when the first rays of the sun fall on her through the small creek of the curtained windows.
Miss Byrdie is waiting for her on the mango tree in the lawn and is singing mesmerizing notes. Ah !well !well! She has news for her best friend, she has something to show her! Hearing her hubbub voice Sprightly finally wakes up, wearing a peach coloured frilled frock sequenced with purple satin laces and pretty shoes to match, a hat gifted by Grandma and a basket to collect wild flowers and berries she sets off towards the woo ds with the all excited Miss Byrdie. As she walks amidst the crisscrossing fields the dew drops on the soft green grass dance n fall down on the ground, the sun peaks behind the canopy to see the little girl in joy plainness.
Little Bambie, the deer is on the roadside munching grass as always, looks up to wish her while Mr. Jack, the monkey on the trees swinging circles with his tail asks her ”Hey!! Miss Spright where are the bananas you promised?” She says” sure thing tomorrow friend!” He throws some delicious and juicy cranberries into her basket.
From somewhere nearby she can hear Miss Camline, the tigress roaring, one of her naughty cubs fell into the ditch while chasing a butterfly! M iss Sprightly takes the cub out and gives him a nice bath with the sparkling water from the nearby stream after which Mr.Junior runs to his mother for his share of breast milk.”Thank You Miss Spright!”says the tigress.
Finally they cross the stream, walk through the green thicket and reach the grassland where the tall grass reeds are dancing to the tunes of the wind. In the midst of the land is a lone tree looking the greenest with bliss to last for a life time! Miss Sprightly the ace climber she is, gets on to the branch on which Miss Byrdie perches upon and as she separates the green drape of leaves she finds a nest, golden brown with three beautiful lily white eggs. Miss Byrdie whose heart is on cloud nine asks” Aren’t they wonderful Spright?” She says” Your kids are a beauty lady!!!”
The clouds refuse to disagree and drizzle and Miss Sprightly with a new found joy bids good bye to her friends and sets towards home, it is dusk time and everyone is tired. On the way back she meets Mr. Rudey ” Hello Miss Spright! What have you been up to for so long out here, and your wild friends? Doing fine? Seems like my gun frightens them! He he! Ha ha! Tough luck Miss Spright!”
Mr. Rudey is one of those old hunters you see!!Our Sprightly is scared of him and so is the rest of the wild!
Night dawns and she reaches home, back under her rug tired and happy.

And the next morning…
Miss Byrdie never sang…
The dewdrops never danced…
Mr.Jack never asked for a banana…
The grass was never green…
Little Bambi never munched them anymore…
The Clouds never drizzled…
The Eggs never hatched…
Miss Byrdie with squeaky cries is sitting at the window sill…M iss Sprightly wakes up seeing tears in her eyes…the sun is ferociously smiling beyond the bare trees...the land is brown and dry…hot winds blowing aimlessly..Mr. Jack was on the road weeping for Mr. Rudey had cut his tail…and he was carrying Miss Bambi dead and hanging upside down with legs tied to a stick…a ghastly sight…a few distance away dear Miss Camline lay slain..the three little cubs weeping…they had lost their MOTHER…her blood dribbling through skin…flowing like a small rivulet and joining the stream.…tears rolled from Sprightly’s eyes...as they reached the lone tree which had lost all her green,she saw the nest lay shattered on the ground..the eggs destroyed…small lives lost...Mr.Rudey had done it again.
The tree stood bare with shame…the sun burning in fury…the clouds evaporated…the last leaf fell…
Miss Byrdie sang the last song of her life…

Miss Sprightly never smiled…

-Raksha