Seth has recently moved to Seattle with his mom, where they live with his new stepdad and stepsister, Beatrice, on a hill above Puget Sound. Seth’s stepdad works for the city and seems like a nice guy, but Seth is unhappy about the change. One summer day, Seth and Beatrice watch as a new neighbor, Mrs. Kadima, moves in next door. When the moving men carry into the house a large object covered with a sheet, Seth and Beatrice are curious, especially when they hear a voice under the sheet screaming, “Jambo! Jambo!” When they go over to introduce themselves, they learn that Mrs. Kadima is from Kenya, in Africa. Her husband, James, has died, and she has come to Seattle to live near her son.
Mrs. Kadima invites the children into her house, where they see baskets and carvings from Kenya, a photograph of her family standing beneath a spreading tree, and an African grey parrot named Asha, a word that means “hope” in Swahili. Mrs. Kadima says that Asha is very smart, but she misses James and doesn’t know why she is in a new place. When Seth tries to feed Asha a bean, she accidentally nips his hand.
Seth and Beatrice come back the next day with snacks for Asha. Seth points out a bare spot on Asha’s chest, and Mrs. Kadima says that Asha has been plucking out her feathers because she is angry about the move. Mrs. Kadima encourages Seth to try giving Asha one of the treats they’ve brought. Seth carefully opens the cage door, and Asha wraps her claws around his finger and snaps up the grape. Just then, Seth’s mother knocks and opens the front door of the house to call them to lunch. “With a beating of wings, Asha was gone.”
WE DASHED OUTSIDE in time to see Asha flying up high into a pine tree.
Nobody could get her down. All the neighbors came out and took turns calling, but that didn’t help. Asha hopped from one branch to the next, staring down at us with her smart, black eyes. Every time Mrs. Kadima went close, Asha climbed up to another branch.
My mother put her hand on Mrs. Kadima’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry,” she kept saying.
Mrs. Kadima smiled and shook her head in a worried way. “If my husband were here, Asha would fly straight to him. James was good with animals, just like your son, Seth. Is Seth’s father also good with animals?”
This story is from the July/August 2017 edition of Cricket Magazine for Kids.
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This story is from the July/August 2017 edition of Cricket Magazine for Kids.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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