Bird of Paradise, not a black and white bird
As an ardent book lover whose father was an academic, I grew up with books lying everywhere around me. So reading books kind of came naturally to me, I was one of those people who read for fun. I got to read so many award winning novels at a very young age even though I do not get to read as much anymore. There were shelves on which books by different authors sat and till today I still have books I picked from my father’s library and haven’t read. It was one of those boring days at home during a break from school about 6 years ago, so I went in search of what I could read and that was when I stumbled on a book which I am never to forget anytime soon. It is one of the most resonating novels I have ever come across. It is titled, “Loving” a book written by one of the best authors ever: Danielle Steel and it was from that book I first saw the phrase “Bird of Paradise” and time after time since then, the phrase keeps coming to mind
WHO IS A BIRD OF PARADISE?
The novel talks about Bettina Daniels, a young woman who was born with a silver spoon and all she had to go through after the death of her father who left her with absolutely nothing as a result of so much debt he had incurred. She had lost her mother at the age of four to Leukemia, she weathered the storm to achieve her dream having four husbands in the process which included her Dad’s best friend. No, she didn’t want to have four husbands. She was just a victim of circumstances and No, she isn’t your conventional kind of woman. I would say she focused on the more important things of life. On loving, on letting go, on forgiving, on success, on greatness, on not staying defeated, on being better, on growth, on not giving in to limitations, on not being intimidated, on not being broken and on thriving. In her I saw a heroine who weathered the storm, pulled through and blossomed. She became very celebrated and saw her dreams through!
She is not perfect! (I didn’t say she was). She has flaws here and there, she recognizes her flaw, she embraces them and she tries to be better. She does not allow the elitist lifestyle to fool her, she is complete within herself, she knows what the society expects from her, she doesn’t allow the society’s expectations to tailor her life, she loves without restrains, she is a non conformist, she is hardworking, she combines strength, grace and delicacy in a perfect finesse. She is adorned with beauty, she is brave, she knows when to let go, she is enough, she makes her own name, she loves and loves over again; truly and deeply, she makes mistakes, she is always misunderstood, she is remorseful, she forgives, her heart is a little too soft, nothing is holding her back, she is determined, she is a dream chaser, she does not allow herself to be defined by what anyone thinks of her, she is insecure, she was abused, She is a head turner, spotted by every male, a fun lover, she is a queen, she wears her crown well and believes she can call anything into existence. Her journey is not exactly the smoothest but despite the flaws, she is very special; a sui generis.
I am not Bettina (she is a fictional character), I don’t have her life, I don’t want to make the mistakes she made but I covet her attitude towards life. I want to care about things that really do matter, I want to love without constraints, I want to pursue, achieve my dreams and be ultimately happy having no regrets. I am exceptional and unusual so I will stop trying to fade into the crowd or be in sync with the backdrop. I’m not supposed to blend. Just the way everything cannot be always black or white so also I can’t be held under. I am meant to stand out. I can never pass for a black and white bird. So I’m going to raise my head up with shoulders high and be exactly who I am- A bird of paradise.
