It really wasn’t so terrible. After all, in the big scheme of things Lucy could consider herself lucky. She was alive, she had three parakeets to take care of, and honestly, she didn’t need much more to keep her mind fully occupied, with worry that is.
Six months ago Lucy was pronounced dead. She was at one of the casinos in Atlantic City when she decided to do her favorite thing, eat! Lucy got in line for the grand buffet and she piled it on as she so often liked to do. There she was sitting at a table alone when she commenced to choking on a piece of food. People around her jumped up to assist with the incident. No one really knew what to do during an emergency like this.
By the time EMS arrived, Lucy was no longer breathing. Efforts to revive her were unsuccessful.
Searching through Lucy’s bag to find out her identity, an emergency contact revealed only her address. Her bag contained only pictures of parakeets, none of people. The police contacted the police in Lucy’s home town and efforts were made to find relatives.
Was Lucy really a parakeet disguised as a human? The police left no stone unturned — Meanwhile, a miracle happed over there on the casino restaurant floor. One of the other customers noticed it first: a strange chirping sound. He saw Lucy’s lips moving and the chirping sound grew stronger. Lucy’s fingers began to move and her arms did as well. One could even say here arms were making flapping movements. Everyone stared in amazement watching Lucy rise up as a parakeet, chirping loudly.
Before long, other chirping could be heard, and lo and behold, a parakeet – this time a feathered one – flew in through an open window and alighted upon Lucy’s shoulder without a moment’s hesitation. More parakeet chirps could be heard…
Lucy, now the parakeet, flew over the gaudy, sprawling casinos and landed on the sand. She spied a couple about to be engaged. The girl was young and lovely, the boy, shy and nervous. Lucy landed on the boy’s shoulder and whispered, “Go to it, ask her to marry you. Tell her she’s beautiful and that you want to spend the rest of your life with her.” The boy’s face showed surprise but he repeated what the parakeet had said – Now, I wonder, who is the parakeet? The boy or Lucy?
The boy regained composure and breathed loudly. The boy and girl looked at each other and at the strange cacophony of birds that so suddenly appeared in the salty air above the sand. They knew this was somehow fate. They took each other’s hand and started to follow the birds. Lucy, the parakeet in front, seemed a little awkward in her flying. They continued following the hovering mass that was approaching a dark enclave close to the wooded boardwalk. It was there that the parakeet Lucy and the boy and girl (Sam and Lola) noticed a soft green light.
The light was emerging from a sphere, descending slowly to the earth. They froze in their tracks which, for the birds, meant that they all fell to the ground. They awkwardly stood upon their spindly little legs, and unruffled their feathers as they stared ahead in amazement. There was not a sound to be heard, and no activity or light, except the sphere dropping gently to earth. The green lights flickered, dimmed, and then a door opened from the top to the ground, creating an emerald walk way.
Lucy and the parakeets walked towards the door in a trance, with Lola and Sam walking slowly behind them, cautiously, to not smash a bird. They walked up the ramp, the door fell behind them, and the ship lifted gently into space and the boardwalk became alive again.
