It’s morning
It is a cold morning in the bush. There is some dew on the long grass. Sunlight falling on the dew drops made them flash like rainbow-coloured fairy lights.
Emster, Matador and Abster are enjoying the sun, resting next to an ancient tree. They don’t speak much, enjoying the peace and quiet. It is such a peaceful kind of morning when ‘doing nothing’ is the only thing to do. ‘Thinking is so much better than speaking’ thought Emster.
However, Matador spoke just then, interrupting the others’ thoughts.
“I want breakfast!”
Matador is hungry but the others ignore him.
“Is there anything to eat around here?”
Emster looks up.
“When you go looking for yours, look for ours as well”
She shares a smile with Abster. The three are good friends but they look and sound very different from one another. They have different ways of travelling from place to place; Emster runs, Matador hops and Abster flies. Their diets are different too; Emster likes fruits and seeds as well as grasses (and even insects). Matador eats mainly grass but he likes some 'tastier' grasses more than others. Abster is really picky, living mostly on flower nectar, but she sometimes eats seeds and insects.
Matador, who is always hungry, hops off looking for his favourite; the tasty breakfast-grass he calls ‘cornflakes’. He takes short hops, scanning the grass in front of him. He sees all sorts of grasses (not very tasty) but no sign of ‘cornflakes’. He keeps hopping with his head down... and runs 'bang' into a boulder by the side of the track.
‘That’s quite an interesting rock’, he thinks. Very soon he forgets breakfast and starts thinking about the rock. ‘What a wonderful shape this rock has! It’s big, round, and hard (’hard as a rock!’ he laughs) and isn’t going to move for anyone. And it’s always there. Nice patterns on it too… Wouldn’t it be nice if it tasted like cornflakes!’
Breakfast would be so plentiful if he could eat rocks! Or soil… or air….
Of course he has to try...He jumps up, trying to swallow air… jumps higher and higher but no cornflake flavour. In fact, no taste at all! Should he try the rocks? Perhaps not the big one but some of the little ones… Perhaps not – ‘my teeth will cry if I try’ he thinks.
‘Cry if I try’ – good one Matador!
“Try if I fry?”
“Fry if I cry? “
“Try to fry but don’t cry!”
He is yelling these words like a song when Abster comes flying in and lands on Matador’s rock.
"What's that noise? Are you singing? Have you had breakfast? Have you found anything for us to eat too? See any bottle brush flowers...?”
Abster doesn’t wait for answers. Her main aim is to get the questions in before anybody interrupts. Matador knew this. He waited a minute before speaking.
“Finished?”
“Hm…?”
“Have you finished asking your questions?”
“Yes”
“Well… The answers are: Singing; A song I started writing… No… No… No…”
“What?”
“I answered all your questions, in the correct order… that is the answer to your last question ‘what?’”
“You are mad!”
“Like you and all your friends!”
They both laugh and Matador explains the word play in his new song. Abster is not satisfied.
“Why just try and cry and fry?”
“Good one Abster! …Why try! Why cry? …Why try to fry and cry!”
They both try to sing but there is no tune as such and they look at each other.
“Emster?”
“Yes”
They head back to their meeting place; breakfast forgotten.
*****
“Had breakfast?”
Emster didn’t look up. She is busy arranging some dry leaves into a pattern that spelt her name.
“That’s your name!”
Abster exclaimed “I can write my name too!”
Matador was quieter, suddenly remembering his breakfast. He answered Emster’s question in a low voice.
“No… didn’t find the grass I was looking for”
Abster was quite excited.
“But he has the words for a song… and wants you to write a tune for it”
Emster looked up showing some interest.
“Good words?”
“Yup, the best!”
“Then how about we have breakfast and the sit down to find a good tune?”
The three of them started walking, hopping and flying looking for food.
Breakfast is good and Abster has enough time to comb her feathers, admire herself in the billabong (it’s important preparation before starting something … important). Emster and Matador are already waiting when Abster flies in smiling.
Emster sits quietly, thinking and the other two are forced to stay quiet (they know how she works). She lowers her head starts pecking a pattern on a log with her beak: tap tap top tip; tap tap top tip; tap tap top tip… and she starts singing to the beat
“Why oh why
Eat grass corn flakes?
Try and fry
For all our sakes!
Cry if dry
Like sand it tastes
Let's all fly
And get Mackers... and pizza... and pasta... and... ice cream... and chocolates... and KFC... and (add whatever else you want but stick to the beat’)
Matador’s got his hit; Abster gets to sing and Emster provides the music.
No wonder the morning in the bush is not quiet and peaceful any more!