Curiosity is the seed of knowledge!

By Sanman Thapa/ Dec. 11, 2023, 9:45 pm

It was the warm summer of 2020, precisely on June 30, 2020, when I woke up unhurriedly, despite the persistent scratching of Bandit, our family dog, seeking my attention. The school year had concluded, so there was no rush, allowing the day to unfold slowly. Ultimately, I got up at about 10:30 am to let Bandit out, giving myself the clarity of peace, undisturbed from his clawing at my bed.

When I opened the sliding back door to the patio, it was a beautiful, quiet, sunny day with a gentle breeze making the air feel fresh. Birds were chirping in the trees above, and baby squirrels were jumping from one branch to another, playing a lively game of tag. Amidst the avian symphony, a distinct sound caught my attention – a crow’s cawing. But the sound was not coming from the same tree where other birds were, but from the north side of our house.

At the time, I didn’t think much of it. I went inside to make coffee while Bandit was out and about, frolicking in the grass. while the coffee was brewing, I prepared Bandit’s food and placed it in his bowl. He came rushing in like the wind for his breakfast. While he was eating, I poured coffee into my favorite mug, stepped out into the sunlight beaming down on the deck, and settled into a wicker chair.

The crow’s cawing persisted while I was catching up on the daily news, making me curious. Despite not being very superstitious, I’ve heard plenty of stories growing up in Nepal about crows. In the Hindu religion, the bird symbolizes a “link between the worlds of the living and the dead,” the afterlife and the spirits of our ancestors and feeding a crow is considered auspicious. In addition, “Lord Shani, the deity associated with the planet Saturn, is often depicted with a crow.”

In Nepal, people also believe that if the crows aren’t happy, they will be the bearer of bad news. Hence, one of the five days celebrated during Deepawali is called Kaag Tihar (Kaag in Nepali word for crow). They worship the crow as the messenger of the death god Yama. I found out that other cultures have similar beliefs, such as Native Americans saw the crow as a ‘trickster.” While Greeks believed it was a “symbol of Apollo in his role as a god of prosperity,” and in Celtic mythology, “the warrior goddess known as the Morrighan appears as a crow.” Likewise, the popular TV series Game of Thrones portrays a raven as a messenger. In some cultures, the bird resembles terrible omens, and something unexpected is about to come your way.

Naturally, I was drawn to the crow’s cawing around our house. A minute had passed, and the crow had flown from the electrical wire from the front of our house to the back. It sat on the gutter right above the sliding patio door. Oddly, it seemed determined to go inside the house.

I observed the bird while sipping my coffee. I got curious and decided to capture the moment on my phone. The crow lingered on the gutter for less than a minute, and finally, it descended on to the chair in front of the patio door and peered inside the house.

By then, Bandit had chowed down his food and wanted to join me on the deck. However, he could not come out because the screen door blocked his way. As Bandit scratched the screen door to come out, he noticed the bird staring into the house, triggering his defense mechanism, leading to him barking at the crow, trying to assert dominance.

Surprisingly, the crow was undisturbed by Bandit’s barking. It did not acknowledge him and continued its peculiar fixation on the house. I thought that was strange, leaving me to ponder whether the crow was hard of hearing or simply unfazed.

When the crow realized it could not get inside the house, it came down to the deck where I was sitting. The distance separated the two of us because of the wide table. First, it landed on the chair opposite me; still feeling safe, I continued recording the strange bird. As I was thinking what the crow was up to, it had hoped to the chair next to me where I was resting my feet. Eventually, the crow approached me, poked around my newspaper, and looked down at my toes, causing a spark of unease to run down my spine.

I began to worry that it may hurt me if it poked my toe. The thought of that made me overly cautious, but I remained still. The crow’s behavior was very odd, and I wanted to capture this bizarre moment on camera.

The crow continuously gazed at my big toe. Just as I was about to move my feet, fearing the crow pecking at me, it returned to the patio glass door and tried to enter the house. It did that for about a minute; Bandit, now out of sight, had been frightened by the bird. The crow had realized it could not go inside; it flew on the tree above the deck, and within 30 seconds, it had disappeared in the wind.

Later, my wife, Kim, joined me on the deck, coffee in her hand. I told her what had transpired just before she came out. She said oh, that’s why Bandit was barking; I thought he was barking at the squirrels.

I showed her the video, and after watching it, Kim expressed her concern, “I would be scared. Weren’t you afraid? That was crazy!” she said. “You shouldn’t have let it come that close to you. What if it had pecked your toe?” said my wife in a giggling voice.

I understood her concern about allowing the bird so close to my feet. At the time, I was captivated by the crow’s strange behaviors, not thinking about the possible dangers the crow could inflict on me. This occurred during the lockdown period, the height of COVID-19, and the world was confused and scared about everything, so her concern was not unreasonable.

Being a typical English teacher, Kim’s inherent curiosity had been sparked. She asked, “Why do you think the crow was interested in getting into our house? What do you think it means?” Do think someone from our family is visiting us? If so who? Her curiosity echoed our shared pondering and our superstitious beliefs. I hadn’t thought of the crow’s eerie actions; maybe I was shocked at how it behaved. I assumed it was hungry and looking for a treat. My toe being its main course.

Kim’s questions prompted me to delve deeper, so I pulled out my phone and did a quick Google search: “What does it mean when a crow wants to get into your house?” The result was revealed in less than a fraction of a minute: “About 73,300,000 results (0.70 seconds),” which led me to believe this was not a unique incidence. Nonetheless, there were numerous stories about crows circulating across the internet.

After reading several different stories about crows, I wondered if the bird was intrusive or just wanted to see what was inside. Or did it think Bandit (13-pound, furry Havanese dog) could be its lunch? If I were on a beach, with seagulls trying to steal food from my hand, I wouldn’t consider it strange or unusual, but a crow in a suburban neighborhood trying to pick my toe or get into the house seems unusual…or is it?

This incident left my wife Kim and me questioning the crow’s motives – curiosity, hunger, or perhaps something more mystical; we may never know. Regardless, credit had to be given to the audacious bird for creating a bizarre moment to remember.

###

Sanman Thapa is a National Board-Certified School Counselor (NBSC). He is also a Bilingual Certified Counselor in New York. He is a Lead Counselor at an Alternative Charter High School in Jamaica, Queens, New York.