Ex-classmate Lay Geok in my RI (Raffles Institution) days has a parrot called Sparky. She said in a recent WhatsApp message:
Sparky observes Ramadan! At the start of Ramadan, Sparky (our pet African Grey) was puzzled why Nunung (my [Malay-speaking] helper) was not eating. Kept asking, ‘kenapa tak makan? [Why not eat?]’ Nunung then explained she ‘puasa’ [fasting] and Sparky acknowledged with an ‘oh’.
After about two days, she observed that when there is the buka puasa [end of fasting] call from the heritage mosque nearby, Nunung will start to eat. Then when she hears the call, she will tell Nunung, ’sudah, pergi makan’ [done, go eat].
Sparky is bilingual — speaks English to us and Malay to the helper. Doesn’t understand Mandarin, Tamil or Tagalog (languages she hears from the neighbours). Will listen intently, scratch her head and ask Nunung, ’apa? [what?]’ Or sometimes just gets exasperated and says, ’tak tahu lah! [don’t know!]’
(Singapore, 2024)
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