The Bird Whistler

My son Bruce is so busy with his job and two boys that a visit from him with the boys is a rarity.

So, when he told me he would be able to come up on a week-day, I began to plan something for me to do with Grant. He is my 13 year old grandson. Bruce always plans his visits to come after lunch and before the evening meal. The reason for this timing is that Grant has Prader Willi and is restricted in how much he can eat. Bruce always brings special fruit flavored water and a treat for a mid afternoon snack. Mealtime is hard for Grant since he cannot eat all his tummy says he can eat.

I like to have something different planned to do with Grant. So, on the spur of the moment I decided to get out the Bingo game and arrange to have prizes for the winners. I had it all set up on the glass top table in the sun room. To make it easier to cover our numbers I had cut little squares of masking tape and stuck them on the table top. In a different place I had hidden the prizes , four of them in an envelope and numbered from one to four.

Bruce asked to take a shower as he had been awakened by Grant at 5:00 that morning. So, as he went up for his shower Grant and Reed, his 18 year old brother got the game going. Grant had an unusually good card and with a little encouragement from me and his brother he soon had a "Bingo". So, I got out prize # one. Four quarters. Grant loves money as he knows he can go shopping and he loves to do that. As the game progressed Grant had a second Bingo. This time the prize was money also, 3 quarters, 2 dimes and 1 nickel. In no time at all, Grant had his third win. This time the prize really got interesting. It was a $20.00 bill.

But that was when his luck ran out as Reed got the next "Bingo". This time the prizes took a down turn, or so I thought. But in all good grace Reed took his prize and went into the kitchen to put water into it. He was not impressed with it. However, his younger brother's curiosity had gotten to him and he wanted Reed's prize. I said , "Maybe you can buy it from him." This appealed to Grant and he told Reed he would give him $20 for his prize. SOLD. What teen ager can turn down $20 for something he did not want in the first place.

Grant went into the kitchen and put a little water into this unusual whistle shaped like a bird. Then he blew air into it and out came the most beautiful bird call I had ever heard. It trilled and rippled and hung in the air like a rustling of feathers. I jumped up and went into where he was and he was soon making all of these beautiful bird calls. Of course I was thrilled at this turn of events. We all went outside and listened to see if any of the birds in the woods around us would respond. And they did !! We were all enchanted. It seems the amount of water in the whistle and the way you blow determines the call you make. Even better the string around the whistle could be hung around the neck for ease of use.

Where did this whistle come from, you may ask. Well, several years ago I ordered it from a magazine with gifts for children. I had bought it with an eye to using it for a Christmas gift, but had discarded the idea and put the whistle away in a cubbyhole in my desk. I had forgotten all about it. It was still in the plastic bag it came in and attached to it was a card explaining all about this little whistle. I needed another prize and quickly decided this was it !

The item came from Jamtown. http://www.jamtown.com/ It was made in Vietnam by craftsmen and women who assemble the clay birds. They are made from a safe, lead-free ceramic. The birds are shaped and painted before firing to harden the material. It is actually a Christmas tree ornament but makes bird sounds so sweet it can be your companion all year long.

There is more. Quoting from the booklet that came with it : "The Bird Water Whistle captures much of Vietnam. Creatures of the air represent freedom, and the people of this country struggled for centuries against Chinese, French and U.S. armies. Water is vital to the rice fields that supply the staple food sitting on almost every plate every day. Bird calls in the early morning start at the same time as the hardworking, industrious Vietnamese people. To fly like a bird is a universal dream and another example of how people are more alike than different all over the planet earth."

So, in light of this extra information, do you think that Grant made a good bargain with his brother for this bird whistle?