by Susan Westley -
Piper Parrot sits on his perch gazing through the big window in the parlor. The city bustles with activity. People scurry back and forth—walking dogs, shaking hands, looking into store windows. Taxis zoom by, honking their horns. Buses stop with a swoosh. The tweet, tweet of a policeman’s whistle sends out a warning.
Every morning the friendly policeman stops by the big window in the parlor. “Polly want a cracker?” he asks. Piper tilts his head listening and looking. “Polly want a cracker?” he says again.
Piper answers, “Piper Parrot, perky and pretty, one, one Park Place in New York City.”
The friendly policeman laughs and continues walking his beat. “See you tomorrow, Piper.”
Piper watches the birds that nest in trees, sit on tops of buildings, and soar skyward on invisible breezes. Oh, how he longs to fly, to soar and look down at the city from the sky.
One sunny morning in July, the window washers wash the big window in the parlor. When they leave, they forget to snap on the screen.
Piper gets an idea!
He hops from the perch to the window sill to the ledge of the building. He spreads his wings, flapping with the joy of freedom, as he sails up, up, up. The wind tickles his feathers as it lifts him higher and higher. The tree tops cheer for Piper.
He begins to sing, “Piper Parrot, perky and pretty, flew through the window to explore the city.”
He looks down at all of the people parading back and forth, walking dogs, shaking hands, and gazing into store windows. The people are tiny, like ants moving to and fro. The sounds of the city blend together – the honking horns, squealing brakes, and the tweet, tweet of whistles.
He glides down to get a closer look. He sees a red-haired lady twirling a purple parasol walking a poodle. He lands close to the poodle and begins to sing, “Piper Parrot, perky and pretty, free at last to explore the city.”
But, Piper startles the dog. The dog begins to yip, yip, yip. The funny noise scares Piper...
