A little bird's discovery

Far away in a cosy, secluded  forest , morning dawned silently as it brought forth a hearty promise of another beautiful day. Silence prevailed among the leafy branches as all the creatures snored on peacefully. That was when a young bird was rudely  awakened  from  her  sleep as a rock landed forcefully near the burrow where she had sought refuge.   “There  goes my sleep”, thought  the bird, “ It is the only part of the day which I ever look forward to”. Well, now that sleep was as surely gone as her parents who had abandoned her right after her birth, she slowly got into the tedious task of cleaning her feathers and getting ready for what was surely going to be a long and arduous day.

As she scrambled her way out of the burrow, she donned her usual mask of indifference and prayed that she should maintain this attitude throughout the day. The usual sarcastic remarks and taunts from the other birds followed her constantly as she made her way to the vegetable garden where she assisted Old lady hen in picking the vegetables to sell in the market. “ Why do they mock me so?”, she lamented to herself, trying to block the tears that threatened to fall. She had a small face and a large, plump body supported by large feet. She had always been timid by nature and no matter how many times she tried she was unable to speak up to the other birds, who never tired of teasing her or pulling her leg.

Nevertheless, she sincerely did her work every single day for she was hardworking and had learnt to be self- dependent at a very young age . She had been forced to rely on herself for even the basic necessities of life like food  and shelter. The Old lady hen doted on her and was full of praises for her dedication and resourcefulness, because of which they never failed to make a profit out of selling her vegetables. Despite all this, there were times when the young bird used to question her past and wonder why she had been placed in such a situation. She had always felt that she had been the favourite target for the bullies because of the fact that she had no family of her own.  Lost in such thoughts, she made her  way to the hollow where the wise Mr Owl resided. She visited him every week to deliver his order of vegetables and to spend some time as she loved listening to his interesting stories.

‘Good evening, Mr. Owl”, she said in her usual cheery tone for the young bird would never dream of burdening anyone else with her problems. But the wise owl was not easily fooled and as he gave her a cup of tea, he immediately asked “ What is bothering you , little one ? Sharing our thoughts always lightens our mind .”  He gently encouraged her and after some persuasion, the young bird poured her heart out to the wise owl. After listening attentively, the owl straightened the reading glasses perched on his nose and took a deep breath. “ Which species do you belong to little one?, He asked her even though he already knew the answer. “ Megapode” , she replied softly.

“Well then let me tell you how megapodes are born”, began the owl. “ Unlike other birds who are born out of eggs hatched patiently by their mothers, megapode eggs are buried deep underneath the sand near volcanic areas. The intense heat of the volcanic sand ultimately result in the eggs being hatched. So the bird standing in front of me has hatched under extreme heat and pressure and come into this world on her own. You have been chosen to be a part of this glorious species because you have the ability and tenacity to survive without depending on anybody. We have all been endowed with different lives on the belief that there is no one more perfect for the role than ourselves. So own it with pride and write your own destiny.”  The megapode stood speechless before him as she realised that she had only been looking at herself from the eyes of the world. As the true realisation of who she really was dawned upon her , she vowed to lead a life with her head held high .  

Nivedita Dwarak