After the job interview, Rogers smiled. He was confident. This time he knew, he will get the engineering job he has been looking for. The Human resources manager who conducted the interview promised to call him back. Excited, Rogers left the room and headed to the parking lot. He saw bird waste on the car windshield. When he lifted his eyes, he shook his head and cried out, “ Not again…”
Rogers saw a blackbird with a long beak staring at him. Rogers became sad. That was his third encounter with the strange bird. Anytime he was about to have a breakthrough or a happy event, this odd bird appears in his life and ruins everything. The first time he saw the strange bird was at the hospital.
Nancy, Rogers’ wife, was pregnant. Rogers was thrilled to become a father for the first time. At age thirty-one, he dreamed of holding his baby boy and kiss him. Nancy was in the delivery room. Tired of sitting in the waiting area, Rogers stepped outside. He headed towards the main entrance.
It was three o’clock in the afternoon. While he thought of his wife and the baby, a giant black bird perched on the electric pole adjacent to the gate. The animal stared at him strangely, making a shrill sound. Annoyed by the sound of the animal, Rogers returned to the waiting room to inquire about his wife and child. A nurse approached him and announced “Sir, I’m sorry to tell you that the baby didn’t survive.”
“What !” he reacted in disbelief.
“Your wife lost a lot of blood, but she will be okay.”
The second time Rogers encountered the strange bird was in Geneva.
Geneva, Switzerland, 2001.
Rogers worked for a large dairy group. He held the position of Sales Manager. Under his leadership, the company doubled its turnover and signed contacts with new customers from Eastern Europe. This performance motivated the Board of Directors to promote him.
Rogers got appointed Group Director for Europe with residence in Rome, Italy. This position offered considerable financial and material benefits (company house, support for children’s education, paid vacations, official business class travel paid for by the company, support for health care, etc.).
Two weeks before he starts as a director, the company decided to organize a party to celebrate his promotion and wish him good luck in his new position. The party was for handpicked executives and VIPs. At the end of the ceremony, which lasted more than five hours, Rogers gave a short speech. He thanked everyone for attending the event and promised to work hard to make the company more successful. Around 11 pm, Rogers left the party and headed to the parking lot to go home. As soon as he opened his car door, he heard an unusual noise above his head. He looked up. It was a bird perched in a tree. When Romeo’s gaze met the animal’s, the latter lifted its wings and made a weird sound. Scared, Rogers quickly got into his car and took off. Two days later, a woman, out of nowhere, posted a video on social media accusing Rogers of sexual harassment. Rogers was fired from the group for dishonorable behavior before he even had time to speak and defend himself. Rogers was devastated.
To be continued…